Radiant Garden Renegades
by Kristen Verne
Summary: collab with Yamichaos27! The peaceful town of Radiant Garden... home to four of the rowdiest kids you'll ever meet. There's never a boring day when Lea, Isa, Sasuke, and Kairi are around, and there's never a day without trouble either. Kingdom Hearts (c) to Disney and Square Enix! Sasuke, Momo, and Yamato (c) to Yamichaos27! Kaname, Rimi, and Mika (c) to me!
1. Prologue

**Hey!**

 **This is the collab story with Yamichaos!**

 **Enjoy!**

 **Kingdom Hearts © to Disney and Square Enix!**

 **Kaname, Rimi, and Mika © to me!**

 **Sasuke, Momo, and Yamato © to Yamichaos27!**

* * *

 **Radiant Garden Renegades**

* * *

 **Prologue**

* * *

Kaname breathed heavily as sweat rolled down his face. As Rimi lied on a medical bed, she smirked at her husband, despite the pain she was in. "Why are you sweating?" she asked with a slight grunt. "I'm the one giving birth here."

"I'm just as nervous as you are." He tensed as his wife gave out a scream of pain. He had been excited when they were gonna have a baby. But now as her nine months were up, even the great Kaname Mae, Captain of the Palace Guard, couldn't help but feel anxiety for his wife and upcoming child. As the moments passed, Kaname just grew more nervous.

Suddenly, two things happened at once; the cry of an infant broke out and Kaname felt the brightest and purest light he'd ever felt. His eyes drifted down to the little pink bundle in the doctor's hands. The nurse wrapped the infant in a blanket and handed the child to the father.

Kaname couldn't help but stare in awe at his newborn child as she was squirming in his arms. He choked back tears of joy. "H-hey Kairi… my little Kairi." He lowered the baby to give his wife a better look. "Rimi, look at her… isn't she perfect?"

Rimi look at little Kairi with a tired but joyous smile. She reached out and touched her daughter's cheek. "She's amazing… So beautiful..."

The nurse then brought over a small tub of warm water. "Sir Kaname, would you like to give the child her first bath?"

"You bet I would." As the guard began to clean his little girl off, he gasped as he realized where the strong light he felt was coming from. Indeed, it was coming from his own daughter. Kaname could not sense a single speck of darkness within her new heart. "Doctor, nurse, would you mind leaving for a moment. I need to speak with my wife."

"Of course…"

Once they were outside, Rimi sat up. "Kaname, is something wrong?"

"No… definitely not." He dried off his daughter and wrapped her back in the blanket. He then placed her in his wife's arms. "Rimi, can you feel it?" The woman looked down at Kairi, who had finally relaxed in her mother's embrace. Rimi could only shake her head at her husband's question. "Rimi, Kairi has a pure heart; there is no darkness within her."

Rimi was surprised to hear that. "What!? That can't be… darkness is in every heart."

Kaname shook his head. "That should be the case, but I can feel none in hers."

The mother's smile brightened. "Then, our little Kairi is very special, isn't she."

The father nodded. "Yes… she is, indeed…"

* * *

 **Eight months later**

* * *

Kaname dressed his daughter in a little pink dress and pinned a white bow in her hair. "You ready, Kairi? This is your first day going into town!"

The infant clapped her hands, happily. She'd been stuck inside the castle ever since her birth and only had her parents or the castle staff to play with. Everyone loved her and was nice… except for one, who kept taking her toys or playing rough and hurting her.

As Kaname carried Kairi to the front doors and pushed them open, a wave of sunlight hit the girl's face. Kaname laughed at his child's wide eyes; this, probably, was the perfect day to take her outside. The sky was the bluest-blue, dotted with puffy white clouds, and the wind blew all the flower petals from the gardens, all through the air.

"Come on, sweetheart."

* * *

The father entered the main gardens, and his little Kairi squealed with utter delight, for the gardens were in full bloom and flowers of all colors spread out before them. "Here you go, sweetheart." He sat down on a bench and set down the infant and she crawled down to the flowers.

"Sir Kaname!" called a voice.

Kaname looked to see a woman with auburn hair approach. "Hello Cissnei, what brings you here?"

"My son," the woman sat down on the bench, beside the man. "He and his friend wanted to come out here."

"How's he doing? I mean, after his father left…"

"He's ok, I think… He doesn't understand how much being a Shinra agent takes from you, especially from Reno." Cissnei sighed.

Kaname crossed his arms. "And Mika, how's she doing? I know Seymour abandoned her and her son."

"She's ok, but I think it affected the boy more."

"Maybe, I can help them both…" Kaname looked out at the garden, eyeing two boys who stood talking.

Kairi crawled through the flowers, loving the colors and smell that floated around her. Suddenly, she bumped her head against something; the infant sat up and looked at what she bumped into. It was a leg.

"Huh? Well, hey there!" she heard a voice from above. "Aren't you cute?"

"What's that, Lea?" asked another voice.

The leg she hit bent down and she saw the person attached to it. A red-headed boy, about 8 years old, smiled down at her. "There's a baby here!" He reached out and picked Kairi up, his green eyes staring at her indigo ones.

Kairi saw another boy, with blue hair, looking at her. "Where'd she come from?"

"I think she's with Sir Kaname. He's over there, talking with my mom." The red-head tickled Kairi. "We can go check." The two boys walked over to Cissnei and Kaname. "Um, sir… is this your daughter?"

Kaname smiled. "Yep, that's Kairi. If she's bothering you, I'm sorry, she's just very curious."

"No," the boy smiled. "I just wanted to make sure her family was in the area."

"Well, thank you Lea. You know, if you want to play with her, I'm fine with that. She's never had any playmates that are younger than 20."

Lea looked to his friend. "I don't mind playing with her; do you Isa?"

Isa shrugged "Eh, sure…"

Kaname nodded. "I'm trusting you two with her, don't take her too far away."

"Yes sir!"

* * *

Lea sat in the bailey, bouncing the infant on his knees. The little one was giggling excitedly. "She's so cute!"

"Hey Lea," Isa stood to his feet. "I'm gonna get us some ice cream."

"Why don't you get a smaller one for Kairi too? I think she'd like that."

The older boy sighed. "Sure…" He rolled his eyes and walked away as Lea began playing patty-cake with the little girl. Isa wasn't too fond of little children, but this little girl wasn't too bad.

As he came around a corner, he bumped into someone. "Hey!"

"Sorry…" The black-haired boy got to his feet. "Aw man… my ice cream." His Sea Salt ice cream bar lay on the ground, and already, ants were climbing over it.

Isa breathed a sigh. "Don't worry, I'll get you another one."

"Really!? Thanks!" The two boys then walked into the plaza. "My name's Sasuke, by the way. Sasuke Kazekiri, what's yours?"

"Isa… Isa Gekko…"

"Isa Gekko… is your mom Mika Gekko, the elementary principal?"

The blue-haired boy nodded. "Yep…" He approached the ice cream counter. "Three sea-salt ice creams, and one jr. vanilla in a cup."

"Who's the vanilla for?" asked Sasuke.

"A kid," Isa huffed. After the salesman handed him the ice cream, he quickly handed Sasuke one of the Sea Salt bars. "Here's your ice cream. Nice to meet you, now bye…" With that, he walked away.

Sasuke watched Isa leave, slightly annoyed at his attitude. "Thanks! Nice to meet you, too!" He took a bite out of his ice cream. "You could lose the attitude, you know."

* * *

Lea took a bite of his ice cream and held the sweet between his teeth as he fed Kairi a spoonful of her vanilla. "Why are you trying to spoil that kid?"

"Well, Isa, I don't know." Lea took his treat out of his mouth. "She's just so sweet and bright. Can't you feel it?"

Isa admitted, he did feel a certain joy around the infant. "I guess…"

"ISA!" The two boys heard a woman's voice.

"Uh… gotta go," Isa jumped to his feet, "I forgot, Mom and I were going to go school clothes shopping. See you later, Lea." He paused as Kairi waved at him, eyes shining. He smiled at the little girl. "And, bye to you, Kairi."

* * *

Kaname looked up at the setting sun; Lea had been gone a long time. He wasn't worried, because he trusted Cissnei's son. His trust was affirmed as the red-headed boy came walking towards him, carrying Kairi. The infant lay dreaming peacefully in the boy's arms.

"Well, looks like you tired her out."

"She ate some ice cream and then just passed out." Lea chuckled, handing Kairi to her father.

Cissnei laughed. "And the bow…?"

Lea looked upwards and saw Kairi's white bow in his hair. "She wanted my scarf and wanted me to have her bow. I couldn't resist…"

"She's already got you obeying her every whim…" Kaname unwound the boy's yellow scarf from his daughter's neck and handed it to Lea. "Hey, Lea. Would you like to play with her again?"

"Yea! I loved playing with her!" The boy took off the bow and clipped it in Kairi's crimson hair.

"Well then, how would you like to babysit her? Rimi and I are always working, and my mother doesn't always have the time to watch her."

Lea grinned. "Yea! I'd love to!"

Kaname stood, smoothing his daughter's hair. "Well then, I'll send you a message when I need your assistance. Nice to see you, Cissnei, and thank you, Lea."

Cissnei bowed. "It was nice to talk with you as well, Sir Kaname."

* * *

Rimi smiled as her husband entered the family's apartment. "It looks like you tired her out…"

"Not me," the man admitted, "Cissnei and Mika's boys did. She made some new friends out of them."

The woman giggled. "Already bending boys to her will? Oh my."

"Well, I'm going to put her to bed…" Kaname carried the infant into her room. He kissed Kairi's forehead before laying her in the crib. "Goodnight, my little princess…"

* * *

 **Yami: Hello everyone! This is YamiChaos27 and this my very first collab story. Kristen Verne has become a very good friend of mine. When she asked me if I wanted to do a cowrite with her, I couldn't refuse. And the fact that it revolves around Kairi, Lea, Isa, and my OC, Sasuke, only made me more interested in this project. When Kris sent me the first draft of this prologue, I have to admit I found it pretty adorable. It's a short and simple chapter, but I think it's a good and fitting start to this story.**

 **Kris: Hey! I hope you guys like this chapter! I'm so honored to be working with Yami; he's a great writer and a good friend. This story is going to be so much fun! Please review!**

 **Romans 12:9-10**

 ** _"Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor."_**


	2. Chapter 1

**Kingdom Hearts © to Disney and Square Enix!**

 **Momo, Yamato, and Sasuke © to Yamichaos27!**

 **Kaname and Rimi © to me!**

* * *

 **Chapter 1**

* * *

"We're so going to get caught…" said a boy with blue hair and a dark blue light jacket.

"Lighten up Isa, this plan is foolproof!" said a fiery haired boy with a yellow scarf.

The blue-haired boy rolled his eyes. "It's not going to work, Lea…"

* * *

 **Five minutes later**

Lea huffed as Aeleus shoved him forward. "I'm going, I'm going…!"

"I told you it wasn't going to work…" Isa rubbed his brow in annoyance.

Kaname stood in front of them, arms crossed, with a humored smile. "If you want to get in the castle, you're going to have to come up with a better plan than that."

"I see your game." Isa sighed, "You're just challenging us, because it's nearly impossible to get inside."

"It's not impossible; there was one person who got inside the castle, and stayed hidden all day."

The two boys stared in shock, much to the annoyance of the other guards. "Kaname, are you sure you should be telling them this?"

"Lighten up, you guys, it's not as if they could ask the person how he did it." A mischievous grin decorated the face of the captain.

The boys were really curious. "Who did it? Who made it inside?"

Kaname leaned down and chuckled. "Me." He outright laughed at the stunned faces of the two; they weren't expecting an answer like that. "Now, if you two are so bored that you would try sneaking into the castle, on a day like this, I have something you could do. Kairi needs a babysitter or two, and you boys are practically her best friends."

"I guess…" said Isa.

"Good! Aeleus, would you mind sending my daughter down here?" The guard nodded and did as instructed.

A few minutes later, the little red-head girl came tottering out, towards them. "Isa! Fire Boy!"

"Hey, Flower Girl!" Lea bent down and gave the little girl a high-five. He lifted her into his arms. "Now we won't be bored! What time do you want us to bring her back by?"

"Around sunset, either that, or I'll come find you three. Now, you kids have fun, and don't cause too much trouble."

"We won't!"

* * *

"Wha' we gonna do?" Kairi grasped at Isa's pant leg.

Isa held his chin in thought. "I don't know…"

Lea leaned back and looked around; his eyes settling on a sleeping teenager, a few years older than him and Isa. A sly smile spread across his face. "I've got an idea!" He sat up and pointed at the pink-haired teen. "How about we do a little… pranking?"

Isa smirked. "Oh, that sounds like fun! And, no one deserves it more than Railaum!"

Kairi cocked her head in confusion. "Why we gonna prank him?"

Lea patted the girl's head. "'Cause he's a butt, and totally deserves it! It'll be fun!"

"Oh…" the little girl grinned. "He got pink hair! Le's make him into a flower!"

The two boys broke out into peals of laughter. "I've got some yellow paint at home, let me go get it!" Isa ran off to get the materials.

* * *

Isa took the paintbrush and leaned over the sleeping boy. "Railaum is a deep sleeper, but we've got to work fast." He dipped the brush in the yellow paint and brushed it across the pink-haired boy's face.

As the trio was in the middle of their prank, two figures happened to be passing by. One was woman with brown curly hair and green eyes, and wore a green gardening dress. The other was a teenage boy with black neck-length hair and green eyes, and wore a black zip up vest. The two of them were carrying shopping bags home when they spotted what the trio was doing.

"Should we stop them?" asked the boy.

"Nah," answered the women. "It's just a harmless prank. Let them have their fun. You're only a kid once, ya know. And it doesn't last forever. Why not let them embrace their childhood while they can?" She then suddenly coughed a few times.

"You sure you're alright, Mom? You've been coughing a lot lately."

"Sasuke," his mother, Momo, whined playfully. "How many times do I have to tell you? You don't have to worry about me."

"You're the only family I've got. I have every right to worry."

Momo giggled. "I'm more worry about you. These days all I see you do is swing around your father's old kendo stick. How long have I had you, and you still haven't made any friends."

Sasuke sighed. "I guess I just don't think I'd fit in anywhere. I mean...who here knows what it's like to grow up without a father? Who would understand me?"

"Oh I don't think anyone is gonna think any less of you for that." Momo then looked towards the pranksters. "I mean look at those two boys over there. They have daddy issues of their own. One's father had abandoned his family all together a few years ago. The other's father's job has him so swamped that he's hardly ever home anymore. I think he hasn't been home for a few years. Neither of them are happy at their respective fathers; one rightfully so, the other...I think he's being too hard on his."

Sasuke looked down. "At least they know them. Mine died before I was born. I never got to know him and I never will."

Momo patted her son's shoulder and smiled. "Come on, Son. Cheer up! I know not having a father hasn't been easy for you, and has made you a bit...insecure. But there's really nothing to worry about. You should take a chance and get to know other people. I don't think your father would want you to be all by your lonesome all the time."

Sasuke looked at his mother in the eye. "How do you do it? How are you always so cheerful even without Father?"

Momo looked at the sky. "I'll admit, I was crushed when your father died. It really wasn't easy for me at first, even knowing that he died doing what he believed was right. But then you were born. I took one look at you and I knew that a part of him survived inside of you, and I regained my hope in life. And seeing you today, seeing how much you resemble him, well except your eyes of course, only reassures me of that. I still miss him so much though. Not a day goes by that I don't think about him at least once. But I was able to move on with my life, selling vegetables and exotic flowers to get by, and taking care of you, because I knew that Yamato Kazekiri lives in you. Why do you think I named you Sasuke _Yamato_ Kazekiri?"

Sasuke couldn't help but chuckle at that. Then it was his turn to look up. "I wonder if I could be a great swordsman like him someday."

"I'm sure you will, Son."

"I just wish he was here to teach me. I would've loved to learn from him."

The mother then looked back at the pranksters. "You see that little girl with those two boys. Her father is a great swordsman like yours. I really think you should meet him one of these days. I have a feeling you won't regret it."

"Really? Who is he?"

Momo then started walking again with a teasing smile. "Oh you'll just have to find that one out for yourself." And then she started coughing again, which this time made her drop her bag of fruits, which spilled on ground. "Oh dear. Clumsy me."

The boy shook his head, amused and worried at the same time. "I really think you should see a doctor." He walked over to help pick up the fruit.

Kairi glanced over as the mother and son went out of sight, she almost wanted to go invite the boy to join them. "Done!" Her attention was averted as Lea capped the paint bottle and grinned. "Kairi, now it's your turn." He handed her an air horn. "Isa and I are going over there; when I give you a thumbs up, blow that in his ear and then run to us." The little girl nodded.

The two boys ran around a corner. "Let the fun begin!"

"Oh yea!" Lea leaned around the corner and gave a thumbs up. Kairi pressed the button and a loud, sharp noise rang out, right in the sleeping boy's ear.

"GAH!" Railaum shot up into a sitting position. He turned, just after Kairi made it around the corner, and out of sight. His jaw dropped as he saw his face reflected in a window. "WHAT THE HECK!?"

Lea, Isa, and Kairi covered their mouths to stifle their laughter. "Oh my gosh… this is perfect!" exclaimed Lea.

"I HEAR YOU LAUGHING! I'LL GET YOU FOR THIS!"

The trio froze. "RUN FOR IT!" Isa shouted as he scooped Kairi into his arms as they ran.

* * *

After they got away from Railaum, Lea took to a moment to let out another laugh. "Ok, we've got to do another prank. That was perfect!"

"Who we gonna do next?" Kairi giggled.

Isa smirked. "I've got a great idea." He pointed at a boy with short platinum-blond hair fiddling with a deck of cards. "Rould would make the most perfect target."

"Mr. Luck?" the young pyro matched his friend's expression. "Oh, that is too easy. Just gotta give him some bad luck vibes."

"Bad luck! Bad Luck!" Their little friend cheered as she got the same devious look. "So, how we gonna do it…?"

* * *

"Hey Rould!" Isa ran up to the teenager. "Can we talk?"

The blonde put his playing cards back in his pocket. "Sure, what game are you playing?"

"You see, I've got this…" the boy reached into his pockets and began searching. "Aw man… I left it at home! I've got to go get it."

Rould cocked an eyebrow. "Ok… ask me about it later." Before he continued walking, Lea shoved a ladder over the walkway; the teen continued walking, but stopped, his eyes widening. Slowly, he turned around and saw that he had just walked under a ladder. "No… no, no, no, no!" Rould turned around, heading for his home, and shrieked. A black cat went skittering across his path. He bolted, running as fast as he could for home.

Isa and Lea burst out laughing; Kairi, laughing just as hard, came over, holding the same black cat from before. "Great job, kid! The cat was the perfect touch."

"T'anks! Can we do 'nother one!?"

"You bet, and I know the perfect candidate." The oldest boy gestured to a dirty-blond boy with an odd hairstyle, just a year or two younger than Lea. He sat, strumming on a sitar.

"Myde!? That wuss? I love it!"

Isa nodded. "I've got dibs on this one. Kairi, you go out there and distract him; Lea, go with her. Make sure that Myde's distracted. "

"What are you planning on doing? The pyro asked.

"Where his sitar strings are attached, on the bottom, is held in by screws. All I have to do is unscrew it when he's not looking. It won't hurt the instrument, but it'll sure be funny." He pulled a screwdriver out of his pocket; he picked it up when he got the paint for the first prank.

"Got it!" The younger two moved, together down to where the sitar-playing boy sat. "Hey Myde! What's up?"

"Hey! Lea, who is your little tag-along?"

The pyro sat beside the other boy, as Myde set his sitar down. "You know Sir Kaname of the guard?" the other boy nodded. "Well, this is Kairi, his daughter."

"Nice to meet you." Said girl gave a little curtsy. All the while, Isa snuck up behind the three, and began unscrewing the bottom plate of the sitar.

"Who knew Sir Kaname had such as cute little girl? By the way, what are you doing with her?"

"I'm her official babysitter," Lea pulled Kairi to him and gave her a noogie. "I have to watch this little bunch of trouble."

The girl squirmed out of his grip. "Lea!" She climbed onto his back and wrapped her arms around his neck, and both of them laughed the entire time.

"You two seem pretty close," the other boy observed, his face softening as he watched them play. "How long have you known each other?"

"I met her when she was only a few months old. I've been her official babysitter ever since."

"How old are you, Kairi?" Myde allowed the little girl to climb into his lap, making him smile as she held up four fingers. "So, you're four? Cool; you're a cutie, you know that?" His smile widened as she giggled.

Lea looked up as Isa gave him a thumbs up. "Hey, Myde, I hate to say it, but we've gotta go. "

"Aw man, well, see you around, Kairi. See you at school, Lea." As they left, the boy picked his sitar back up. He went to strum it, and the bottom part, holding the strings, fell. Myde cried out in shock. "My sitar!"

The three began laughing, behind a building. "That was awesome!"

Lea then got an ominous sparkle in his eye. "Now, we have one more prank to pull, on the ultimate targets!"

"Who…?"

* * *

"Dilan and Aeleus are gonna get it for throwing us out!" Lea rubbed his hands together.

He felt a little tug on his pant leg. "You're not gonna get my daddy, right?"

"Of course not!" the boys both agreed. "Your dad is cool. We just want to get these two jerks!" Isa held two cords, attached to two buckets, over the door. One for Dilan, and one for Aeleus. The three hid behind a wall and waited.

The trio stiffened as they heard the door open. Isa let some slack on the cord, dumping the first bucket…

"LORD ANSEM!"

"Are you alright?"

Lea and Isa gaped… had they just…? Peaking around, they saw the ruler of Radiant Garden, dripping wet, from their bucket of water. Slowly, leaning against the wall, the red-haired boy gulped. "Oh, we are so dead…"

"OH, you think!" Isa snapped.

"Hee, hee," Kairi, however, found this development quite funny. She couldn't contain her giggles. "We got Uncle Ansem all wet!"

"I knew it!" They turned and saw Kaname standing over them. "Come on…" He ushered them out into the open. "Here are the culprits, my lord."

Ansem the Wise glared at the trio, making them squirm under his gaze. "What is the meaning of this?"

"W-we didn't mean you to get you, s-sir…" Isa waved his hands.

"Y-yea," Lea bit his lip. "We were aiming for Dilan and Aeleus."

"Sorry, Uncle Ansem…" Kairi pressed her fingers together.

The ruler looked between the three children. "Dilan, bring me the other bucket." The guard bowed and went for said bucket. "Now, I do believe some sort of punishment is in order. I mean, you did just dump water on the ruler of this town…" Kairi looked downwards, as the two boys with her, tensed. Ansem took the bucket from Dilan. "Now… for your punishment…" The trio all gasped as the ruler dumped the water over the three of them.

Kaname laughed, outright at the soaked children. "Alright, you three. I think you've overstayed your welcome." He placed his hands on the shoulder of the two boys. "You two rascals should head on home. You can come see Kairi tomorrow, if you'd like, but if you dump any more water on Lord Ansem, I may have to revoke your babysitting privileges. Am I clear?"

"Yes sir!"

"Kairi," the father smiled at his child. "You go on inside and dry off; your mother has dinner ready."

"Kay, Daddy." The little girl was a little down that they got in trouble, but was relieved that her father wasn't mad at her. She waved at the boys. "Bye Isa! Bye Lea! See you tomorrow!"

Ansem the Wise smiled. "Come on, sweetie, we both need to dry off." He took his great niece's hand, and they went inside. At the same time, the two boys headed back into town.

"Captain," Aeleus sighed. "Why do you insist on letting your daughter hang around with those two… ruffians?"

Kaname threw one arm around the shoulders of his fellow guards. "Don't you two forget, we were just like them when we were their age?"

Dilan face palmed. "You would bring that up…"

"Yep," the captain gave a hearty laugh. "You two are the biggest stiffs in the world, and you know it." They both, finally, cracked small smiles at that.

* * *

 **Yami: I thought that a pranking spree would make for a good first example of how there's never a dull moment with these kids. And I gotta say I found Kris's ideas for the pranks and their executions pretty hilarious. Oh and by the way guys, if you haven't already, you should check out the stories I wrote for Kris's universe: a oneshot story starring Kaname called** ** _A Warrior's Last Stand_** **, and an ongoing spinoff story starring my OC, Sasuke, called** ** _Moonlit Knights_** **.**

* * *

 **Kris: Oh, the fun this chapter was to write! I hope you all enjoyed it! I know that Yami's "Yamato" character may be unfamiliar to some of you, so check out** ** _How We Met_** **and you'll see, not only Yamato's story, but that of Kaname and Rimi as well.**

* * *

 **Proverbs 19:20-21**

 ** _"Listen to advice and accept instruction, that you may gain wisdom in the future. Many are the plans in the mind of a man, but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand."_**


	3. Chapter 2

**There wasn't much feedback last chapter…**

 **I'm a little surprised.**

 **Well, whatever.**

 **Kingdom Hearts © to Disney and Square Enix**

 **Sasuke, Momo, and Yamato © to Yamichaos27**

 **Kaname, and Rimi © to me**

* * *

 **Chapter 2**

* * *

Kairi wandered around town, searching for her friends; she wanted to play with Isa and Lea, but she couldn't find them. She saw a flash of red hair and grinned. Running towards her friend, the little girl couldn't stop as another person came around a corner.

She slammed into a blonde teenage girl. An ice cream bar splattered to the ground and the teenager gaped at the ice cream stain on her black blouse. "You little brat! What do you think you're doing, bumping into me like that!?"

"I-I'm sorry!" Kairi stood, bowing her head. "I-I wasn't looking where I was going." She tried to go around the girl.

"Don't you walk away from me!" The teenager grabbed Kairi by her hair, pulling hard.

"Hey! Le' me go!" The little girl whimpered as she was forced to her knees.

The blonde growled angrily. "You ruined my favorite shirt, and now you're gonna pay!"

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

The teen twisted the child's hair. "Not good enough! Say it like you mean it!"

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Kairi cried out, with tears rolling down her cheek.

"Hey!" A new voice cut in. Both girls looked and saw a teenage boy, with black hair, holding a wooden sword, standing nearby. "What do you think you're doing?" His question directed at the older girl.

"I'm teaching her some manners! Get lost!"

The boy narrowed his eyes. "From where I stood, her manners were just fine. She apologized… multiple times. You're the one who needs to learn some manners, like accepting her apology."

Kairi, through her tears, looked gratefully at the young man. However, her body tensed as the blonde gave her hair another hard pull. "Mind your own business."

"Sorry, but letting a little kid get bullied doesn't sit well with me. Especially for something as trivial as ice cream on your shirt."

The teen girl shoved Kairi to the ground, letting her go. "I said butt out already!" She punched the boy in the stomach; the boy gripped his gut, but quickly stood up, punching the girl in the face, sending her to the ground. She touched her cheek. "I can't believe you'd hit a lady!"

"Lady?" His voice held a small growl. "What kind of 'lady' goes around picking on little girls? All I see is a bully, and I don't tolerate bullies, no matter what gender they are."

"How dare you!?"

He pointed his wooden sword at her. "I won't tell you again… Leave. Her. Alone."

At first, the teen tensed, but soon relaxed, a smirk spreading across her face. "Go ahead. Do what you want; you'll regret it. You think you're gonna play the hero? All my parents are gonna hear is how you assaulted me, and then you'll be nothing but the villain!"

"Is that what you think?"

The three turned and saw Captain Kaname Mae standing over them, hand on the hilt of his katana. His face was devoid of the usual mirth and joy; only anger and stiffness could be seen.

"Daddy!" Kairi scrambled to her feet, clutching her father's leg. "Daddy, that girl was picking on me. I bumped into her by accident and made her drop her ice cream. I sai' I was sorry, but she kept pulling my hair."

"Is that right?" The man narrowed his eyes at the girl, making her tremble.

Lea came running up, behind Kaname, breathing heavily. "You know… Mister Mae… you could've… waited for me…!"

"Sorry Lea," Kaname's sternness melted for just an instant. "But when you gave me the tip, I just couldn't waste any time. Thanks by the way."

Lea nodded, before standing up straight, glaring at the blonde girl. "Arleen Viggo, never thought you'd stoop so low."

"Can it, flame breath!"

"Arleen Viggo, huh?" Kaname glared at her intently "I'll be having a word with your parents later, but for now…" His thumb pushed his sword an inch out of the scabbard, startling Arleen. "I suggest you get going…" The blonde wasted no time and took off. Kaname allowed the sword to slide back down into its sheath, before kneeling down to his daughter. "You ok, sweetheart?"

Kairi wrapped her arms around his neck. "Yes, Daddy! Thanks to that boy over there!" She pointed at the black-haired boy.

"What's your name, kid?"

The boy looked nervous. "Sasuke… Sasuke Kazekiri…"

"Kazekiri?" Kaname gave him a knowing smile. "You're Yamato's boy, aren't you?"

"Y-yeah… did… you know him?"

The captain's smile widened. "He taught me everything I know about the art of the sword."

"H-he did!?"

The boy just stood there, mildly in shock; Kaname placed a hand on his shoulder, "My name is Kaname Mae. Thank you for defending my daughter."

This broke Sasuke out of his funk. "N-no problem. I just… did what anyone else would've done."

Kairi gave a little curtsey. "Thank you very much. My name's Kairi; Kairi Sakura Mae." Sasuke nodded and smiled before looking at the red-haired boy behind Kaname, waiting for his introduction.

"Name's Lea Fahrenheit. Got it memorized?"

The boy gave a grin at Lea's pleasant demeanor, before noticing Kaname's eyes on his wooden sword. "So you like swinging swords around, like your father, huh?"

"Yeah…" Sasuke looked at his sword with a gloomy expression. "I never got to meet him, but Mother told me he was a great swordsman in his time. I guess I wanted some kind of… connection to him."

"I see." Kaname stood up, scratching his chin in thought. "Say Sasuke. As thanks for helping my daughter, I'm gonna invite you over for dinner."

"R-really?"

"Sure! Why not? What do you say?"

Sasuke bit his lip, but looked like he really wanted to say yes. "I'll… have to ask my mother, but…"

"Extend it to her as well." The man gestured to him. "I have something I want to talk to her about."

This caught the boy's attention. "Um, ok. But just so you know, my mother's been awfully ill lately. Nothing contagious, and she should be good enough to come. Just… be mindful."

"That won't be a problem," Kaname waved, dismissively. "I'll tell the palace guards we'll be expecting company. They'll show you the way to our family quarters."

"Thank you sir."

The man nodded and turned to his daughter. "Come along, Kairi. We've got to tell your mother we're having guests over for dinner tonight."

"Kay! Bye Sasuke! Bye Lea!"

As the father and daughter left, Lea turned to his fellow teenager. "Be thankful I saw what was going on and got her father here pronto, before that escalated."

"Thanks."

"You should consider yourself lucky." The pyro patted Sasuke on the shoulder. "Not many people get to have the honor of having dinner with the Captain of the Palace Guard. Get it memorized." With those words, Lea left Sasuke alone with his thoughts.

* * *

Kaname looked up at the knock on the front door. "That must be our guests."

"Good timing," his wife called, "Dinner will be ready in just a few minutes."

The man pulled the door open to reveal Dilan, along with Sasuke, and Sasuke's mother, Momo. "Hello! Welcome to our humble abode! Thanks for bringing them up here, Dilan."

The guard nodded and left to return to his post.

"Thank you for inviting us, Captain." The woman coughed, making her son look very nervous.

"Momo, there's no need to be so formal," the man led her to the couch. "I've told you before, just call me Kaname."

"DADDY!" Kairi's voice rang out, slightly strained.

The father sighed. "I'm sorry, but I'll be right back."

Sasuke looked around. He didn't expect their home to be this nice; it was so close to Lord Ansem's private chambers.

"Again, sorry about that," Kaname reentered, holding his child. "Someone put their PJ's on wrong and got their head stuck in a sleeve…"

"Daddy…!" Little Kairi playfully pouted.

Momo gave a small chuckle. "I actually have something for you, Kairi." The little girl stared excitedly as the woman reached into a pouch and pulled out a pressed flower; the petals were white with gold tips. "Here you are, sweetie."

Kairi squealed in joy as she took the pressed flower from Momo's hand. "Thank you Ms. Kazekiri!"

"Go put it in your room, Kairi, and go wash up for dinner." The father set his little girl down. As she scampered off, he smiled at their guests. "I hope you two like broccoli and cheese casserole."

* * *

Sasuke took a big bite of the casserole; ever since his mom got sick, he hadn't had a good home-cooked meal. "Kaname?" his mother looked at the guard. "Did you want me here for the same reason I think it is?"

This got the boy's attention. "What are you talking about, Mother?"

The adults looked at each other, before the Captain of the Guard set his fork down. "Tell me, Sasuke, do you really want to become a swordsman like your father?"

"It's the only connection I have with him." The boy responded, flipping a piece of broccoli with his fork. "I think I would feel much closer to him. And it's the only thing I feel like I can do."

Kaname smiled. "Well, I used to be a punk kid, with… less than ideal family circumstances. I stole things to allow myself and my mother to eat, and I broke into the castle just for fun. Well, after said break in, and all the mess that went with it, your father helped get my mother and I out of a terribly messy situation. After that, he offered me a position as his apprentice." He gave the gentlest of smiles to Sasuke. "I was given a chance to make more myself, by your father. And I wish to give you the same opportunity. Would you like to become my apprentice?"

"You want to train me?" He dropped his fork in surprise. "You mean it?"

"Of course! Your mother and I have discussed this quite a bit, over coffee. I believe you're old enough to start now. Plus, I'd say you've proven today that your heart is in the right place for it. So… what do you say?"

Sasuke looked down, blinking in shock. Everything within him wanted to become a great warrior, like his father, and now the opportunity lay before him. "Well… I-I want to…" He steeled himself as he put his hand onto his chest and said. "I want to become your apprentice."

Everyone, including the boy, smiled happily. "Now," the captain leaned back. "We can figure out a schedule tomorrow morning. We can do training sessions after school for a few days a week. Not every day, though. I mean, you need some time to spend with your friends. All work and no play isn't good for you." He then noticed Sasuke's face fall. "What is it…?"

The boy sighed. "Well, Sir Kaname, the thing is… I don't really have any friends…"

"You can be my friend!" Kairi jumped up. "And you're nice! So, Lea and Isa will want to be your friend too! You should come play with me tomorrow; you can meet them."

"Well, I don't…"

Kaname placed a hand on his new apprentice's shoulder. "Sasuke, you need friends by your side. You should go and meet Lea and Isa. Oh they're rascals, to be sure, but they're good young men."

"Yes son," Momo took her son's hand. "I think you'll be pleasantly surprised at what you'll find."

"Ok… I will…"

* * *

Kaname stood by that gates, watching Sasuke admire his new weapon, a standard issue broadsword. It wasn't his father's sword, but Kaname was saving that weapon for a special occasion. "Sasuke, why don't you put up your sword? There's some people here to see you…"

"Huh?" The boy sheathed his sword to his back.

"Sasuke!" Kairi came running up with two other boys behind her. "Hi!"

"Hi Kairi…"

The little girl pulled on his arm. "Come meet my friends! This is Lea and Isa; guys, this is Sasuke." The black-haired boy averted his eyes.

"Nice to meet you Sasuke!" The red-head boy threw an arm around Sasuke's shoulder. "You know, we were headed out for ice cream. You wanna come?"

Sasuke blinked in surprise. "Y-you want me to come with you?"

Isa nodded. "Sure, the more the merrier…"

"Come on! Let's go!" Kairi pulled on Isa's pant leg. "Let's go get ice cream!"

"Alright… we're coming…."

With that, the four went off into town; Kaname watched them go, with a smile on his face…

* * *

 **Yami: So now my OC, Sasuke Kazekiri, joins the group and becomes Kaname's apprentice. Look forward to seeing what his new friendship and position gets him into. You may recognize the first scene from the flashback in my** ** _Moonlit Knights_** **story, with some slight changes.**

 **Kris: Yes, that first scene is from Yami's** ** _Moonlit Knights_** **. I hope you all enjoyed this one. And, yes, Arleen is Larxene's somebody.**

 **Please review!**

* * *

 **John 6:35**

 ** _"Jesus replied, 'I am the bread of life. Whoever come to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.'"_**


	4. Chapter 3

**Kingdom Hearts © to Disney and Square Enix**

 **Sasuke © to Yamichaos27**

 **Kaname and Rimi © to Kristen Verne.**

* * *

 **Chapter 3**

* * *

"Hit the deck!"

Sasuke ducked as a soccer ball flew over his head. Lea gave a sheepish smile. "Sorry, Sasuke."

"Man, you really can't kick a soccer ball." The young swordsman chuckled. "Kairi's better than you are."

"Oh, ha, ha. You're so funny…"

Kairi giggled and Isa rolled his eyes, as the two continued to argue. They all paused as someone cleared their throat behind them. "What are you kids up to?" Kaname stood there, a wide smile plastered on his face.

"Sasuke's just affirming the fact that Lea can't kick a soccer ball to save his life," Isa said deadpanned.

Kaname laughed. "I hate to say it, but I've seen you play and I have to agree that you should just stick with your Frisbees. Maybe, one day, you can ask your mother to teach you how to use chakrams, like she does."

"Hmph…" Lea pouted. "Fine…"

"Actually," the guard's face became solemn. "There have been monsters spotted around town. Sasuke, go get your sword and meet me in the square. Kairi, go back to the castle and wait for your grandmother to come get you. And, you two boys need to get home. I don't want any of you hurt; now get going."

"Yes sir."

* * *

Sasuke slung his sword over his shoulder, and hurried through the streets. He skidded to a stop as a group of blue monsters appeared in front of him.

"Oh crap!" The boy pulled out his longsword. As the monsters attacked, the boy slashed, using the skills he had learned. He dispatched the creatures, all but one… "Hey! Get back here!"

Sasuke chased the single blue monster through the street. A young man came out of a house as the monster ran past. The man leapt forward, summoning a sword in a blur of light. With one quick slash, he destroyed the creature.

"Aw, I almost had it…" Sasuke sheathed his sword with a huff.

The brown-haired youth chuckled. "Sorry." He cocked his head. "But, what's a kid like you doing chasing Unversed?"

"Unversed?" Sasuke blinked in confusion. "You mean those monsters?" The young man nodded. "Oh, well, I'm the Captain of the Guard's apprentice. Actually, I was heading to meet up with him when I met up with the… um… Unversed."

"Well I'd hurry up and get to your master. That Unversed was just a small one, but there are much stronger ones in the area. You'd be much safer with him."

"Ok," Sasuke smiled. "By the way, what kind of sword is that? I've never seen one like it before?"

"It's called a Keyblade… though, your sword isn't bad either."

"Oh, this thing? Its standard issue; nothing special, really. You should see my master's sword; now that one is worth praising."

The Keyblade wielder chuckled as he held out a hand to Sasuke. "I'm Terra…"

The boy took his hand a shook it. "Sasuke. Nice to meet you Terra."

Terra smiled. "Now, you should get going…"

"Ok, see ya!" The boy waved before hurrying to meet up with his mentor.

Kaname, standing in the center of the square, looked up. "What took you?"

"Sorry, Master Kaname. I met up with some of those monsters, and a guy named Terra." The boy scratched his head, sheepishly. "Oh, and they're called Unversed…"

The captain gave him an understanding smile. "Ok. Now, come on. We have work to do."

* * *

Kairi sat on the steps, before the castle. Earlier, a blond haired boy had pass by the gate, but then took off to chase a large monster. Soon after, Dilan and Aeleus spotted some more blue monsters and went after them, telling her to stay put.

She sat still, waiting for her grandmother. Suddenly, she straightened up as a dark feeling stirred in her mind and felt close. With the turn of her head, she squeaked in alarm. A blue creature stood behind her. The darkness came from it. With a swipe of its foot, it knocked the poor girl down. She got up, with the monster chasing after her. As it swiped at her, again, Kairi gave a squeal.

"No! Run!" Came a new voice.

Kairi barely registered this as the monster cornered her. It dove down, only to be distracted by the newcomer. The little girl quickly turned to see a young woman with blue hair, holding what looked like a key-shaped sword. With no other options, Kairi ran and hid behind her, placing her hand on the handle of the sword, over the stranger's hand.

More monsters appeared and one leapt at them, only for a small figure, with a sword, like the older girl's, and two giant mouse ears, to destroy it. He turned to the two females. "Hurry! Ya gotta get that girl to someplace that's safe."

"Who are you?" The older girl asked. "Why do you have a Keyblade?"

"I'll tell you later. Right now we gotta stop these things!"

Kairi felt the ground vanish beneath her feet, as the girl picked her up, putting her at the bottom of the stairs. "Stay here…"

"Kay." The girl stood still for a moment, watching the young woman climb back up the stair, before slowly following suit to watch the battle. Kairi gasped in amazement as the two warriors fought off the monsters.

Once the monsters were vanquished, the two warriors dismissed their weapons and Kairi tottered over behind the mouse. The blue-haired girl came over, kneeling in front of them. "Thank you. My name is Aqua; I train under Master Eraqus."

"And I'm Mickey," the mouse grinned. "I used to be Yen Sid's apprentice. I came back to him for some more training."

The girl, Aqua, smiled and turned her attention to little Kairi, but continued speaking to Mickey. "I sense light within this girl. You think that's why they attacked her?"

"Yup, I think ya might be absolutely right. If ya ask me, she must be somebody pretty extraordinary."

Kairi listened, though she may not have truly understood what they meant by "light", but she blushed at the compliment by Mickey. Her smile widened as Aqua gave her a gentle look. "Yes, I'm certain she's someone we're supposed to protect."

"Let's join forces!" Suddenly, a light broke out from Mickey's pocket. "Oh no! Not now!" Light engulfed the mouse and shot off into the sky. "I'll be ok! See ya real soon!" His voice faded out as the light vanished.

Kairi recovered from her shock first. "Here!" She handed Aqua some flowers.

"Are these for me?" The older girl looked touched.

"I picked you some flowers; thank you for saving me."

"Oh they're lovely," the blue-haired girl took them with a soft smile. "You're so sweet."

"My name's Kairi. Nice to meet you!"

"Nice to meet you too. I'm Aqua." Her face took a more serious approach. "Kairi, about that light…"

"Kairi!" Came an older voice.

The two girls turned and saw an old woman. The small child grinned. "Oh, Grandma!"

"Wait, Kairi, just a minute…" Aqua stayed the child. She reached out and touched the pendant around the girl's neck, which lit up slightly. "I just cast a magic spell on you. One day, when you're in trouble, the light within you, will lead you to the light of another, someone to keep you safe."

"Thanks!" The girl grinned before running to her grandmother.

"There you are," said Grandma Sakura. "It's time to go."

"Kay!" Kairi paused before turning back to Aqua, and waving. "Bye!" Aqua waved back.

The little girl listened as her grandmother began telling her her favorite story. She thought about Aqua; that girl was an amazing warrior, just like her dad. Nothing would make her happier than to be just like them. Maybe, one day, she could have a sword just like Aqua.

* * *

Kaname popped his shoulder, looking over at his apprentice, a smile on his face. "Great job today."

"Thank you." Sasuke took a couple of deep breaths to catch his breath.

The boy paused as a grumpy voice reached his ears. "Dang that old coot. I didn't sign up for this…"

"Hey Braig!" Kaname approached the fellow guard, before wincing at the sight of his face. "Geez…. What happened to you?"

The man clutched his right eye and had a deep gash on his left cheek. "I-uh… was caught off guard by one of those… creatures."

Kaname raised an eyebrow. "How did the guard's sharpshooter let such simple creatures sneak up on him?"

"Hey!" The man became defensive. "Every soldier has an off day, alright?" He flinched… "Man! This freakin' hurts!"

"That looks really bad. You'd better get to the infirmary right away. Need any help?"

"No, no," Braig waved a hand as he passed the captain and his apprentice. "I can get there on my own, thank you very much! You and that little squire can go about your business." With that, he walked out of sight.

Sasuke bit his lip. "Not too friendly, is he?

The captain shrugged. "Given those injuries, I can see why he's cranky right now. But, yeah, Braig's not what you call a 'pleasant person' to be around, and he's certainly not good with kids, either."

The apprentice cocked his head. "I take it he wasn't good with Kairi, huh?"

"Not at all." Kaname nodded. "He always took her toys away, and thought it would be fun to hang her upside down over the stairs…"

"How have you not hit him before now?" The boy gaped.

"I never had to," his teacher chuckled. "My wife did that all on her own. I just put him on probation, she slapped him silly," The two guys laughed at the mental image of the calm, sweet, Rimi, slapping Braig.

* * *

Lea and Isa sat at the bailey. "Dude, I'm bored."

"Amen." Isa sighed.

"Hey, I've got an idea." Lea smirked. "You know, the only time we've ever gone in the castle, is for Kairi's birthday parties. Even then, we were escorted directly to the Mae quarters, and never got to explore. Since there's a lot of confusion, why don't we try and sneak in… you know, just for exploration purposes?"

Isa nodded thoughtfully. "You know… I like it. Let's do it."

The two jumped up and headed towards the castle. As they went through the square, Lea paused as a strangely-crafted wooden sword tumbled by his feet. He picked it up, before looking at the owner, a blonde boy with spiky hair, who was kind of looking a bit down. "This yours?"

"Lea, we don't have time for this…" Is a huffed.

"Lighten up, Isa. It'll only take a sec." He took on a cocky grin, turning the sword's hilt to the owner. "You still play with toy swords? That's cute." He tossed the wooden sword down. "Now this right here…" He pulled out his two Frisbees. "Tada! Whaddaya think?"

The boy sighed, looking away. "Not a whole lot."

"You're just jealous; I'm Lea. Got it memorized? What's your name?"

"Ventus…" the boy tensed.

"Okay, Ventus." The red-head grinned. "Let's fight!"

Ventus looked back at Lea, eyebrow raised. "Fight? Why would I wanna do that?"

Lea knew he could get this boy to comply. "You scared of losing?" He jumped back, preparing to fight. "C'mon. Hope you're ready." The blonde smirked before grabbing his wooden sword and jumping to his feet. "Yea! Now we're talkin'!"

"You're gonna be sorry."

Isa smirked.

The fight barely lasted ten seconds before Ventus knocked the Frisbees from Lea's hands, making the red-head fall on his butt. "You… had enough? 'Cause I'm willing to call it a draw if you are."

"Huh?" the sword-wielder chuckled. "Right…"

Isa shook his head, not able to bare the silliness any longer. "From where I stood, the only thing you drew was a big 'L' on your forehead for 'Loser', 'Lame', 'Laughable'…"

"WHA- Isn't this the part where ya, cheer me up or somethin'?" Lea gaped at his best friend's actions. "'You're just havin' a bad day,' or 'that's what you get for pullin' your punches! Some friend…"

"Oh, you mean I was supposed to lie."

The red-head groaned before leaning back on the ground. "Ya see what I gotta put up with? Sure hope you don't have friends like him."

Ventus began laughing, and the other two boys joined in. Isa was the first to compose himself. "Lea, we have to go."

"Kay."

"Already?" Ventus's voice dropped.

Lea got up, turning to the blonde. "I'll see ya when I see ya. After all, we're friends now." His smile widened as Ven's eyes brightened. "Get it memorized."

"Ok, Lea."

The blue-haired boy turned to look at his friend. "What is it with you and picking up stray puppies?"

"I want everybody I meet to remember me. Inside people's memories, I can live forever."

"I know I won't forget you," Isa rolled his eyes. "Believe me, I try all the time."

"See, I'm immortal!"

"You're obnoxious…"

The red-head grinned. "Are you ready?"

Isa sighed. "Well I can tell you are…"

"Yea!"

* * *

"I should've known this wouldn't work…"

Dilan carried the two boys out of the castle, by their shirt collars, before tossing them down. "So, you two thought you'd do some exploring while we were all busy with the monsters?"

"Oh really?" Kaname and Sasuke came up the stairs; the captain grinned. "You two really need to stop. Now, why don't you two head home. Sasuke, would you mind escorting them? We don't want them doubling back to try again."

"Aw come on! He's younger than us!" Lea argued.

"Then you shouldn't have tried sneaking inside the castle. Now, get…"

* * *

Kaname sat at the main banquet table, with Ansem the Wise, his wife, Kairi, and the head scientist.

"So, I heard that you and your apprentice had your hands full today?" Ansem smiled.

The captain nodded. "We certainly did. Those monsters, or Unversed, as they're called, were everywhere."

"Unversed?" Even cocked his head. "Where did that name come from?"

"Sasuke said he met someone who knew about them. He also said that the person had a sword he called a 'Keyblade'. Could that be the legendary warriors I used to research in the library?"

Rimi looked at her husband. "Do you mean the ones who you based your code of honor off of?"

"The very same…" He looked at his ruler. "This Keyblade wielder, knew these monsters."

Even scratched his chin. "That explains the boy I saw earlier. First he stopped by the gate before chasing after one of those things, and then he saved Ienzo from a pack of them. He too, according to the boy, had a key-shaped sword. "

"Key-shaped sword…" Kairi muttered just loud enough for the others to here.

Ansem turned to the little girl. "Kairi, what is it?"

"I met someone with a sword like that too!" The child exclaimed. "She saved me!"

All the adults tensed. "Saved you?"

"Those Unversed things chased me, and she, and a giant mouse with another key-sword, saved me. It was so amazing! Then, she cast a spell on me; she said that when I'm in trouble, my light will lead me to the light of someone else!"

Kaname gave a smile. "What was her name?"

"Aqua!"

The two parents looked at each other; someone, who didn't even know them, saved their little girl.

Deep in his heart, Kaname wished to find this Aqua, and thank her for saving his little princess.

* * *

 **Yami: So now we've covered the time when Terra, Ventus, and Aqua visit Radiant Garden. I liked Kris's idea of having Sasuke meet Terra. Also the thought of Rimi slapping Braig Jack-Sparrow-style, so funny.**

 **Kris: Yami gives me a lot of credit, but his ideas made the chapter what it is too. I really enjoyed working on this one.**

* * *

 **Proverbs 27:9**

 ** _"The heartfelt counsel of a friend is as sweet as perfume and incense."_**


	5. Chapter 4

**Kingdom Hearts © to Disney and Square Enix!**

 **Kaname and Rimi © to Kristen Verne!**

 **Sasuke © to YamiChaos27!**

* * *

 **Chapter 4**

* * *

Kairi and Sasuke watched as Braig, Dilan, and Ansem returned to the castle, the scarred, eyepatch-wearing sharpshooter carrying a silver-haired man. Kaname hurried the children away before they could get a good look at the man.

"What's going on, Master?"

"Don't worry about it," Kaname spoke firmly. "Take Kairi to our apartment, and then you head home."

"Yes sir…" Sasuke, despite his curiosity, obeyed.

* * *

Later, Kaname met with Ansem and Dilan, in His Lordship's study, examining the hollow suit of blue armor that Dilan had brought in.

"Do you think these belong to that young man?" asked Ansem.

"I don't think so, my lord," Dilan answered. "This armor looks a size or two too small for him."

"Judging by its body shape, I'd say this armor belongs to a woman," said Kaname.

Ansem rubbed his chin. "But we didn't see any woman anywhere when we found them."

"And what do you suppose this thing is?" Dilan pointed at what looked like a blue key-shaped sword.

Kaname looked closely at the weapon. "If I had to make a guess… I'd say that it's one of those Keyblades I've been hearing about."

"Do you think it belongs to the man, or the owner of this armor?"

Kaname then picked up the Keyblade by the handle and looked at it, however within a few seconds images suddenly flashed in his mind. Many of them went by too fast for him to comprehend. When the images stopped he found himself with a slight headache.

"Kaname, are you alright?" asked Ansem

Kaname shook off the pain and said, "I'm fine. Just felt a little dizzy for a second." He didn't know how to explain what just happened so he decided to keep quiet. "Anyway, I think it's more likely the Keyblade and armor belong to the same person." He set down the Keyblade but kept his gaze on it and the armor. Although he couldn't clearly remember most of the images he saw, one thing he did notice that they had in common was a blue-haired young woman. The one image he did remember seeing above all the others was that of the woman receiving flowers from his own daughter, Kairi. _Could this Keyblade and armor… belong to Aqua?_ He thought. If he was right, it made him wonder what happened to her, if her Keyblade was here but she herself was nowhere to be found. Just thinking about the possibilities troubled him deeply.

"What do you propose we should do with this stuff?" asked Dilan.

Ansem thought for a minute before answering. "Seal them in the lower chambers of the lab until further notice. Who knows? Maybe their owner will return for them one day. But until then, I don't want such delicate gear falling into the wrong hands, especially the Keyblade."

"Yes, my lord."

* * *

Kairi stood by her mother's legs as the woman dabbed the comatose man's forehead, with a damp cloth. "Kairi, dear, could you go get me some more rags, please?"

"Yes, Mommy." The little girl skipped to the medical cabinet, where only the child-friendly objects were near the bottom. She grabbed the rags and went back to Rimi's side.

"Lady Rimi," Even came to the door, "Your uncle wants to know how he's doing."

"He's still unconscious, but his fever's going down."

"Good, keep us updated," Even nodded before heading back to the lab.

Rimi wiped the sweat from the man's brow; his fever was still high and he sweated a lot, but he seemed to be doing better. "Mommy," she looked down at her little child. "What's his name?"

"His name is Xehanort, Kairi… a strange name, but an interesting one, nonetheless." Kairi reached up to touch them man's hand, but the second she touched his skin, she pulled back as if burned. "What is it, darling?"

The little girl shuddered, backing away from the man, before turning and running away, whimpering and crying. She ran until she happened upon her father walking through the halls, clamping onto his leg, crying. "Daddy! Daddy!"

"Sweetheart, what is it?" The captain turned around wiping his child's eyes. "What's wrong?"

"D-dark…" the girl couldn't get another word out as her sobs choked her up. She wrapped her arms tightly about her father's neck, refusing to let go.

Kaname picked her up, cuddling Kairi close as she whimpered. Rimi came around the corner, face riddled with concern and confusion. Not wanting to disturb his daughter, the captain mouthed, 'what happened?'

'I don't know.' Rimi shrugged.

Kaname patted his daughter's hair, trying to soothe her fearful cries.

* * *

Sasuke handed Kairi an ice cream bar, trying to raise her spirits. All he knew is she had a fright earlier that day, but she couldn't remember what had scared her. As soon as school ended, Kaname brought her to her three friends, hoping to make her happy again.

Lea set Kairi on his lap, hugging her to bring her some comfort.

"So," Isa broke the awkward silence. "I'm sure you heard about the guy they found in the square, right?"

"We saw him, right Kairi?"

The girl nodded, "Yea…"

"I wish I could see him…" the red-head got a sly grin. "What if the two of you snuck us inside the castle, just to see him?"

Sasuke glared. "Are you kidding!? Master Kaname would kill me if I did that!"

"We won't be caught. We just go in, and then out. That's it."

Isa shrugged. "I'm for it… Kairi?"

"Ok… I know a secret way in…"

Sasuke frowned, but finally gave in. "Ugh… fine…!"

* * *

Rimi stood beside the bed bearing Xehanort, she looked at the cloth laying on his forehead; it had dried out. She removed it, dampening another one before pressing it in the place formerly occupied by the other cloth.

Suddenly, the man's eyes snapped open and he grabbed her wrist before sitting up. Rimi squeaked in shock at his actions, her indigo eyes staring into his golden ones.

"Where am I? Who are you? What are you doing to me?"

"Please, I'm only here to help," the woman gasped. "My name is Rimi. You have a fever, I'm trying to help it go down." He released her arm, allowing the woman to rub the red mark on her wrist. "That's quite a grip you have there…"

"Sorry…" The man's golden eyes followed the woman as she picked up the rag from the bed.

"Now, you still have a fever, so lay down." When he didn't comply, Rimi narrowed her eyes, placing a hand on his chest. "If you don't do as I ask, I will make you."

Xehanort laid down, allowing her to place the damp cloth back on his forehead. "So, now what?"

"You aren't moving from that bed." The woman said sternly. "I'm going to tell my uncle that you're awake. If I come back and find that you've moved from that bed…" her expression softened, greatly. "Now, would you be ok with him visiting, or would you rather some peace and quiet for a time."

The man sighed. "I would rather have visitors later."

"Alright then. I'll be back in a few minutes."

* * *

Sasuke watched as Rimi left the room. "I can't believe we're actually doing this…"

"Look, all we're going to do is look inside the room, and then bug out. We won't be caught."

The young apprentice sighed and motioned for the others to follow. The four peaked around the edge of the doorway, looking at the man lying in bed. Sasuke gasped; the man looked almost identical to Terra, save the golden eyes and silver hair.

His gasp caught the attention of the bedridden man, who looked directly at the four of them. At this, the four children ducked behind the wall.

"And what are you up to… and why are you here?" They all turned to see Kaname standing behind them.

"Uh, hi, Master Kaname… we- we were just trying to see the guy…"

The captain crossed his arms. "None of you, except Kairi, are supposed to be here."

"Excuse me…" a voice came from the room. Kaname walked over, looking inside at the man, who sat up, using one arm. "I thought I saw some children… was I mistaken?"

The man narrowed his eyes. "Yes, you saw some children, however they some are not supposed to be here. I was going to escort them out."

"Honestly, I would like to meet them."

Kaname looked at the four children. "Well, I guess it's ok… come on, you four."

The boys quickly filed past him, but Kairi followed her father inside, hiding behind his leg.

"Hi, name's Lea, and this is Isa and Sasuke; got it memorized?"

"I am Xehanort," the man looked between the boys, eyes focusing on Isa for a second longer than the other two. He turned his gaze on Kaname. "Sir, I don't believe I caught your name."

"I'm the Captain of the Guard, Kaname Mae, and this is my daughter, Kairi." He narrowed his eyes, slightly. Something about this Xehanort just felt wrong.

"It's a pleasure…"

Kaname sighed. "I know that it was short, but these three boys should be outside the castle; Sasuke, make sure these two rascals get out, and then you can head home."

"Yes, sir." Sasuke took a quick glance at the Xehanort, wondering why he resembled Terra. As the young swordsman led Lea and Isa out of the castle, he began internally debating on whether or not he should tell Kaname about this.

As the boys left, Xehanort cocked his head. "Is your daughter usually this shy?"

Kaname turned his head to look at little Kairi, who clung to his leg, shaking and shivering. "No… not usually."

"My uncle is glad that you are up and will be visiting lat… Oh!" Rimi stood in the doorway, surprised to see her husband and daughter. "I was not expecting to see the two of you here."

"Rimi, what are you doing here?"

They heard a chuckle come from Xehanort. "This lovely lady was the one taking care of me when I awoke."

Said 'lovely lady', smiled. "Indeed, I offered to take care of our guest. Kairi was helping me, until she ran out earlier."

"So, how do you know one another?" The silver-haired man asked.

Rimi smiled. "Kaname is my husband. Now, dear, why don't you take Kairi out, she looks a little…" The woman didn't want to say frightened, but that is exactly what the little girl showed: fear.

"Sure, but could you come outside for a moment, I need to speak with you on something."

"I really need to change his medical dressing," the woman told her husband. "Can it wait until supper?"

"I suppose…" Kaname bent down and picked up his shaking child, before leaving. However, his eyes did not miss his guest's gaze, staring at his wife.

* * *

Kaname cuddled his little girl, for she was unable to sleep alone. She was so scared. The captain couldn't help but believe that Xehanort was responsible, for she had never acted like this before.

The door opened and his wife came in, eyes becoming concerned as she saw her daughter. "How is she?"

"Terrified, but finally asleep." He rocked the child. "Rimi… I- I want you to do something for me."

"Yes…?"

"I want you to let someone else take care of Xehanort." He sat down.

The woman sat beside him, a questioning look on her face. "Why would you ask me to do that?"

"Rimi, you trust my instincts, right?" She nodded to him. "I don't trust him. I can't put my finger on it, but something about him doesn't feel right. The moment Kairi entered the room, she became frightened and began shaking. His presence seems to scare her."

"Well, if I was to watch him, wouldn't that be better?"

"Not the way I saw him looking at you." The man's eyes narrowed. "Ever since I married you, I saw men looking at you. I mean, you are beautiful, but Xehanort looked at you in a different way. I can only describe it like an animal. I don't want you near him."

Rimi wrung her hands. "I see… do we want to tell my uncle about this?"

"Not yet," Kaname shook his head. "Other than my instincts and observations, we have no proof. You and I can keep an eye on him, and if it continues or gets worse, we'll tell him."

The woman nodded, kissing her husband's cheek. "Ok, I trust you, my darling."

* * *

Two months after Xehanort's arrival, Kaname stood, arms crossed beside his leader. Ansem had been working on an experiment of the human heart, and his hypothesis concluded that they may be able to restore Xehanort's lost memories.

Kaname personally hoped that Xehanort wouldn't regain his memories; the ominous feeling he felt, most likely came from his former life. If the man never remembered, he might be able to start over and the dark feeling might vanish. However, he would still have to deal with the fact that Xehanort had been continually looking at, and speaking sweetly to his wife.

After the experiment, the silver-haired man lay in stasis. "Ansem, do you believe that he will regain his memories?"

"There is a small chance, and he knows this." The scientist looked to his captain. "I do hope that I am able to help, but, he is very smart. If he should not remember, I plan to take him as one of my apprentices. What do you think?"

"If he does not regain his memories that may work…"

The two looked over as Xehanort stirred, moaning. The young man opened his eyes, the golden orbs having a different glint.

Kaname bit his lip; he felt a flare of darkness before it subsided. Ansem smiled. "So, young man, how do you feel?"

"I-I feel strange… but, I don't remember anything new. I'm sorry, Lord Ansem." The man looked away.

Ansem sighed. "Xehanort, the offer for you to stay here and work still stands. However, it has come to my attention that you have been pursuing my niece. If you wish to remain here, I ask that you stop."

"Yes sir…"

* * *

Braig put his feet up on a desk, staring at a piece of paper in his hands. That Xehanort… he may have lost his memories, but he still remembered some things, such as his purpose here.

The one-eyed man couldn't wait to get in on the action and this note brought him such excitement.

 _"Braig,_

 _It is time we began. After observing the castle staff, I see many that could be useful, but Kaname is the best suited to our cause. However, he has too strong a will._

 _I leave it to you to assist in breaking his spirit. I shall continue pretending to pursue his wife, but you can target the daughter. However, do not kill her. She is one of the pieces of the puzzle that cannot be replaced. I do not care who else you kill or employ, but she must live._

 _Do not fail me._

 _-X"_

Braig smirked. He always despised Kaname and his goody-two-shoes attitude, and he relished any attempt to break him, and boy would it be fun…

* * *

 **Yami: And now enter the antagonist! Kaname and Rimi have both got their eyes on Xehanort, but sadly they don't have any on Braig. What plans do they have for the Mae family? *evil smirk* You just have to find out.**

 **Kris: DUH DUH DUUUUUHHHH! See, we're not going to be nice to you always. *mocking wave* have funnnn!**

* * *

 **Psalms 25:15**

 ** _"My eyes are continually toward the LORD, For He will pluck my feet out of the net."_**


	6. Chapter 5

**Kingdom Hearts © to Square Enix and Disney!**

 **Sasuke, Momo, and Yamato © to Yamichaos27!**

 **Kaname, Rimi, and Orochi © to me!**

* * *

 **Chapter 5**

* * *

"Where are you going?" Kaname exclaimed, playfully; he charged forward, nearly catching the squealing little girl.

Kairi ran from her father, laughing as he chased her. She broke off down the hall, towards her great uncle's office. Pushing the door open, the child dashed inside, diving behind her older relative's desk.

Ansem looked down at her, shaking his head. "Kairi… what are you doing?"

"Daddy's tryin' ta catch me!"

She heard the office door open, and her father's voice. "Oh, sorry, my lord. I didn't know you had company."

"It's fine." The man picked his great niece up. "My guest doesn't seem to mind."

The little girl looked around and saw a familiar figure; it was the same mouse who helped Aqua rescue her. "Hey! I r'member you! You and Aqua helped save me!"

"I thought I recognized you." He laughed. "Do you remember my name?"

"Mickey!"

Kaname took his daughter into his arms. "So, you helped save my little girl; you and Aqua?"

The mouse nodded, his cheerfulness dropping for a moment. "Yep." He held out a hand. "I'm King Mickey."

"My name is Kaname, and this is Kairi. I must thank you for rescuing my daughter, before." He took the white-gloved hand and shook it. "Now, Kairi, why don't you go find mommy. I think she's at our apartment."

The girl nodded. "Yes, Daddy." She waved at Mickey, "Bye!"

The three watched her skip out of the room. Kaname turned to Mickey. "Your Majesty, I have a question."

"Yes?"

"The woman who helped you save Kairi, is there any way I can thank her?"

The mouse's smile fell, "No… she- well, she's gone missing. I wish we knew more, but we don't."

The captain sighed. "Oh… I'm sorry." Kaname bowed. "Thank you, Mickey, once again, for helping save my little girl."

"It was my pleasure. But, Kaname, you might want to keep your daughter close."

Ansem leaned forward, concerned. "Why?"

"Because, I could sense that she has a pure heart. She is one of seven maidens with pure hearts: the Princesses of Heart. There are people, dark and evil people, who might want to use her, one day, for her power." Mickey looked very serious.

"I see," The captain looked down in thought. "I knew she was special from the moment she was born." He then opened his eyes with a serious look. "You don't have to worry, I won't let anyone hurt my baby girl. I'll protect her with my life."

The mouse looked hopeful. "I'm sure you will."

* * *

Rimi hummed to herself as she finished chopping up the last of the vegetables, for her stew. She looked up at a knock on the apartment door.

"Just a moment." The woman swept all the vegetables into the pot before going to the door. However, the person on the other side of the door, was the last person she wanted to see. "Oh… Xehanort… what are you doing here?"

The silver-haired man came inside, much to the horror of the woman. "I just wanted to speak on a certain matter, my lady."

"Oh…?" Rimi moved to put the couch between her and the man. "What matter?"

"You see, I have this experiment I presented to your uncle, and he shot it down. I was wondering if you would please put in a good word so that my experiment can continue…"

Rimi narrowed her eyes, ever so slightly. "Xehanort, my uncle only performs experiments that are within the laws of ethics, and if he refuses to perform an experiment, then he does so on good grounds. I will not put in for such an experiment. Now get out of my home."

"Oh…" Xehanort walked around the couch, a strange glint in his eyes. "Lady Rimi, you are such a lovely young woman, and so spirited too…"

The woman moved to the door and held it open. "Get out! Now!" Her eyes followed the man as he strode past her, eying her the entire time. Once he left the room, Rimi slammed it shut. She took a few steps before her legs wobbled and she collapsed.

Her mind barely registered the front door opening, and the child's voice exclaiming. "Mommy?" Kairi grasped her mother's arm. "Mommy, what's wrong?"

It took an entire minute for Rimi to come around, slowly clutching her child's hand. "N-nothing's wrong." She smiled. "Why don't we go work on dinner, darling?"

"Ok, Mommy…"

* * *

"You propose an interesting idea."

"Look, all you've gotta do is snag the little girl when she's out with her friends, and those three won't be a problem." The man in a black coat leaned on a wall, the hood covering his face. "You might want to consider grabbing them as well. One: you can never have too many hostages, which two of them can supply. And, Two: the third boy is the son of Yamato Kazekiri."

This caught the other man's attention. "Yamato's son… we will certainly look into this prospect further."

The man in the coat laughed. "However, I have a small request. My benefactor wants the little lady alive. Now, I know, since she's a royal, you want her dead, but my benefactor plans to give her a fate worse than death. I'm sure you can support that…"

"You do understand that such a request must require… incentive…"

"Oh, I know. And here's your 'incentive'," he tossed the man a small bag, which jingled with a metallic sound.

"I think this arrangement will work quite well…" he turned to the man in the coat, "unless this munny is fake, and you plan to betray us."

A swirling portal of darkness appeared, and the man in the coat approached it. "Ha. As if…"

* * *

"Sasuke, catch!"

The black-haired boy jumped, catching the frisbee. "Comin' your way, Kairi!" He tossed it, but a strange, and out-of-place gust of wind, knocked the frisbee down an alley.

"Aw man!" Kairi ran after it, with the boys following.

"Kairi, hang on!"

A man in black clothing stood at the end of the alley, holding their frisbee. "Is this yours?"

"Yes sir…" said Lea. "may we have it back, please?"

The man smirked. "No." Four men stepped out of the shadows, clamping cloths, soaked in chloroform, over the children's mouths.

The four kids struggled, but the chloroform took its toll, and their eyes closed.

* * *

Sasuke shook his head; he went to reach for his head, but he couldn't move his hands. "Oh crap…" He looked around and saw Lea and Isa leaning against some pipes, arms bound behind them, in exactly the same position as he was. The young boy's sword lay against a wall.

"Uugh…" Isa shook his head, coming out of the drug too, as was Lea.

"Isa, are you ok?"

The blue-haired boy sighed. "Well, I've been drugged, kidnapped, and tied up… I'm doing great…" his voice dripped with extreme sarcasm.

"Hey, where's Kairi?"

All three boys gasped. "Oh crap. We've gotta find her." Sasuke grew extremely nervous. "I think I know who kidnapped us, and if I'm right, she's in extreme danger."

"I might be able to get free," Lea shifted a bit. "My mom's been teaching me magic, and I just mastered Fire. I could use magic to burn through these ropes."

"Do it!"

The young pyro took a deep breath as the area behind him lit up with firelight. A second later, he pulled his arms free. "I'll get the two of you free."

Minutes later, Sasuke slung his sword over his shoulder. "Come on. Let's find Kairi and get out of this place."

"Yea."

The three slunk through the seemingly deserted hall, listening for any sign of Kairi or their captors. Isa took the lead, but stopped by a door. "Guys, listen."

"What?" On the other side of the door, the boys could hear the quiet sounds of sobbing. "Kairi?"

The sobbing stopped, and a small voice spoke out. "Lea?"

"Kairi!"

Sasuke tried to open the door, but it was locked. "Are you ok? What did they do to you?"

"I'm tied up." The girl called back. "Please, help me."

Isa pushed the other two aside. "I've got this." He took a deep breath before kicking the door open.

"Isa! Lea! Sasuke!" The little girl sat tied against a post. Sasuke went over, slashing off her bonds before Lea pulled her into his arms. "Where are we?"

Lea brushed her hair comfortingly. "We don't know. All we want to do is get out of out of here."

The young swordsman drew his weapon. "It's gonna be harder to get out of here. I'll take care of whoever gets in our way. You two just focus on getting Kairi out of here."

The boys nodded following the young swordsman. As they turned a corner, the children skidded to a stop. "Ah, there you are." A group of men stood in front of the exit. "I thought it would take you a little less time to escape. I'm disappointed in you."

"Let us out!" Sasuke shouted.

"I don't think so…" the man smirked. "Our leader wants a word with you four. Men, take them!"

Sasuke stood his ground, sword out, but there were too many. Strong hands tore the longsword from his hands, as they were caught in strong grips. Men clamped chains around the wrists of Lea and Isa. And, they dragged Kairi away, tossing her into a small cage.

"Hold on." The leader of the group held up a hand. "Let me look at that boy." Two burly goons forced Sasuke to his knees. "I must say, aside from his eyes, this brat is the spitting image of his father."

Another man knelt down, staring at the boy. "Oh, imagine what we could do to him, as payment for his father's interference…" Sasuke growled as his suspicions were confirmed. He knew exactly who these men were. The Insurgos; the same rebels who attempted to kill Ansem the Wise and his family, and the same rebels who killed Sasuke's father.

"Yes, Edgar, and not to mention that it was this boy's teacher, Kaname, who pretty much thwarted our last attempt to destroy the royal family. Honestly, how Orochi was able to kill Yamato, but then get beaten by his own son is beyond me."

Edgar nodded. "Indeed, Draco, but regardless, dealing with this boy will be more satisfying than when we poisoned Yamato's wife."

"W-What!?" Sasuke gaped, eyes open in shock. "What did you just say?"

Draco smirked. "Oh? You didn't know that your father was killed by your master's father?"

The boy shook his head, though that information did shock him. "Not that! What did you say about my mother?!"

"We poisoned her, and quite subtly too." Edgar grabbed the boy by his hair, staring him in the face. "All we had to do was sneak a poisonous flower into her garden, where she would inhale its pollen. By the time she discovered the flower and got rid it, it was too late; the poison was already affecting her lungs."

The man gleeful expression as he was telling him this made Sasuke's blood boil. He clenched his teeth, tears welling up in the corners of his eyes. "It wasn't enough for you to kill my father, but you're the reason my mother's so sick? Wh-why would you do such a thing!?"

"Orochi was so close to killing Ansem, but Yamato had to be all 'noble' and used himself as a human shield, followed by Kaname raising his sword against his own father and winning. That was the closest we've ever been to ridding the town of those blasted royals, and because of your father, our plans were ruined. We've never had another opportunity like that one! Someone had to pay, and since Yamato was already dead, we naturally turned to his wife."

"You… you monsters…!" The boy shuddered with fury. He broke away from his captors, tackling Edgar. Over and over he punched the man in the face with a vengeance. Soon he grabbed a nearby rock and hatefully readied to smash it into his head.

At this point, however, Draco grabbed the boy's arm. "I can't let you kill Edgar; losing a soldier to a brat like yourself is insulting."

"Kill him…?" The boy's hand shook as he dropped the rock. He looked at the blood on his hands. "I-I was going to kill him…?" Just the thought of taking another's life always disgusted him, and yet here he was trying to kill a man. He was in such shock that he didn't even fight as the men grabbed him, shackling his wrists, behind him.

* * *

Kairi shuddered as two men carried the cage she was in. She looked over at her friends who struggled, save Sasuke, who looked completely zoned out, and had to be dragged by the men holding him.

They entered a large room, full of large, threatening men and women. One man, sat on a dais, the shadows covering his face. Draco approached and bowed. "Commander, I have something that might interest you."

"Draco," came an elderly voice. "Who are these children?"

"These two are of no consequence, and would be great slaves until they are needed as hostages. However, these other two… are most intriguing subjects." He pointed at Sasuke. "This boy is not only the apprentice of Kaname Mae, but also the son of Yamato Kazekiri."

"Most intriguing… and the girl?"

Draco opened the cage door and pulled Kairi out, tossing her before the man's feet. "This one is a royal, the one I spoke to you about. She is the child of Kaname and his wife, Rimi: third in line for the throne."

"Kaname's little princess… well, it's an honor to finally meet you."

"W-who are you?" The little girl shuddered.

The man stepped off the dais, revealing him to be an elderly man with small streaks of auburn brown hair speckled in the gray of his hair. "Oh, come on, child. Are you telling me that you don't recognize your own grandfather?"

"Huh!?"

These words brought Sasuke out of his stupor. "Wait! You're Orochi Mae?"

"Indeed, boy." The man knelt down over little Kairi. "Your father was truly a pain, little one. And he will suffer for imprisoning me." He placed his foot on the girl's neck.

"Leave her alone!"

Everyone turned and saw Isa struggling. Orochi smirked. "Don't question me, boy."

"You monster! She's just a kid! Don't you hurt her!"

"Bring him here." The guards dragged the blue-haired boy forward. "You and your friend will now serve me. So, learn what happens to those who question me."

It happened so fast, almost no one saw it; Orochi pulled out a knife and slashed twice, cutting an X into the boy's face.

"ISA!" the kids shouted.

Blood splattered on the ground as the boy gave a cry of pain. The man wiped his knife and waved. "Take those boys from my sight; lock them away, and give that one medical treatment. We can't have a potential hostage bleeding out."

Kairi and Sasuke could only watch as their friends were dragged away. "And what shall we do with these two?"

"Bring me some rope for this little one. I wish to get acquainted with my granddaughter, before we hand her over to that informant of yours, Draco. For, did he not say he would give this tiny royal a fate worse than death?" He fixed his eyes on Sasuke. "Set up the block. We shall give the son of Yamato a special honor… a public execution!"

* * *

Cisnei, Mika, and Rimi sat in the Mae quarters. The sun had gone down and Lea, Isa, Sasuke, and Kairi were still missing. Sasuke's mother, Momo, was so sick, she had slept all day and had no idea her son was missing.

The door opened. Rimi stood up. "Uncle, have they found them yet?"

"I'm sorry," Ansem hugged his niece. "Kaname is trying to sense Kairi's light in hopes of locating them. Even King Mickey's offered to help. Don't worry, we'll find them."

* * *

Kaname sat, cross-legged, eyes closed. Aeleus honed his axe sword as he waited patiently. Dilan huffed, "Where is Braig? We're going to need him."

"I'm sorry," Xehanort spoke up. "I saw him earlier; he has a very high fever and can't get out of bed. I could come…"

"No." Kaname spoke. "You stay here." He stood up. "I know where they are; they're in the ruins on the outskirts of the dark depths. Mickey, would you help us?"

The king nodded, "Of course."

The four ran through town, Kaname in lead. He hoped the children were ok; his instincts told him that something was off about this kidnapping. For some reason, he thought that his father, Orochi was behind this, but he tried to push those thought out.

His father was dead; after the attempt on Ansem's life, Orochi had been sentenced to life in prison. However, four years ago, the prison collapsed and all the inmates died, including Orochi. But why were his instinct telling him his father was there?

* * *

Kairi trembled as her grandfather came near her. "Don't worry, child. I'm not going to harm you."

"Wh-what do you w-want?"

"I don't want you to miss your friend's execution." He picked her up, much to her terror, and carried her into the main room. He sat her on his knee, as if he was a wonderful grandfather.

Sasuke knelt in the center of the room, bound to hooks in the floor, his head resting on a wooden block. The boy had never felt so powerless in his life, and wept at the fear of death, especially as a man came forward, hefting up a large axe.

"Let's get on with the show."

The executioner lifted his weapon, preparing to bring it down on the young swordsman's neck. Kairi closed her eyes, only for Orochi to grab her face and force her eyes open. "N-no! Stop!"

"You will watch!"

Suddenly, a bright light exploded overhead, startling the gathered rebels. Their leader stood, Kairi tumbling off his knee, slamming into the rock floor. The executioner looked at him. "Commander, what is going on?"

"I don't kn… augh!" a blast of fire hit the man in the back. A light spell shot out of the shadows, hitting the executioner.

Kairi felt two arms sweep her up, bringing her away from the men. "Are you alright?" Mickey let her go, untying her arms and legs.

"I'm ok…" the girl looked and saw a figure dashing out to where Sasuke knelt. "Daddy?"

"Yea, that's your dad. He's gonna get Sasuke, but you and I are gonna escape."

"But what about Lea and Isa?" She asked.

The mouse gave a comforting smile. "Don't worry, Dilan and Aeleus are getting them out." He took the child's hand. "Now, let's get out of here."

Orochi growled as he recognized the man cutting loose Yamato's son. "Kaname…"

"Are you ok?" the captain smiled at his apprentice.

"I am now… Master! Look out!" The two jumped apart as the Insurgo leader brought his broadsword down.

The old man faced his son. "You were foolish to come here, son."

"No!" The captain readied Dawn's Might. "You were a fool to have my daughter, apprentice, and two innocent boys kidnapped." He growled. "I'm going to take you back to prison and throw you in the deepest, darkest hole I can find."

Orochi chuckled. "After all I've done, you still want me alive… your kindness sickens me."

"I believe anyone can change, including you, father."

The old man smirked. "You truly are hopeless… just for that. I won't even give you the satisfaction of taking me to prison…"

"What do you me…? NO WAIT!" Kaname reached out for his father as the man turned his sword around, stabbing himself through the heart.

* * *

"Oh! My darling!" Rimi ran forward, hugging Kairi, tightly.

Cissnei embraced Lea. "Oh, my baby!"

"Moooommm!"

"Isa…" Mika touched her son's face. "What did they do to you?" An X shaped bandage covered her son's face.

"It's nothing, it's just a scratch…" He pulled off the gauze, revealing the red X shaped scar.

Kaname stood nearby, arm around his apprentice, who trembled after his near-death experience. Both kept silent, not even saying goodbye as Mika and Cissnei took their sons home to comfort them.

"Master… may I stay with your family tonight?"

"Of course, Sasuke," the man gave a small smile.

* * *

The boy sat on the couch in the Mae apartment. He couldn't sleep, so he just cried. "Sasuke," Kaname came out of his bedroom. "You should be asleep."

"I-I can't…"

The captain looked at his apprentice before going into the kitchen; minutes later, he came back with two mugs, full of steaming hot chocolate. "Ok, tell me what's going on."

"I-it's my mother… she's not really sick."

"What?"

"Sh-she," the boy began to shake. "She was poisoned… the Insurgos poisoned her…!"

Kaname stared at him, in shock. "Sasuke, I'm so sorry… I can't imagine…"

He bit his lip, until it bled. "I-I almost killed someone…" His master stiffened slightly, listening intently. "He told me about how they poisoned my mother… he smiled, he was happy… he was happy that she was dying!" He shook so badly that his hot chocolate spilled; he set it down before continuing. "S-so… I attacked him… I beat him. His blood was all over my hands… I grabbed a rock and I was going to beat his head in… One of them men stopped me… but, if he hadn't, I would've killed him… I wanted to kill him… I WANTED HIM DEAD!" Sasuke broke down in tears. "I never felt an desire to kill before,... and I can't believe I actually felt it!"

Kaname set down his cup of hot chocolate; he knew he was the closest thing to a father that this boy had. Pulling his apprentice into a hug, he allowed the boy to cry on his shoulder. "It's ok… it's gonna be ok. I'm here for you…"

It took a while for Sasuke to let it all out, but once he started to calm down, his master spoke. "Listen, what you did was how anyone would've reacted in your position. When someone gets hurt by another, whether physically or emotionally, they often want revenge for the wrong that was committed. And at times, they want them to pay with their lives. Your reaction to your only living family being poisoned by rebels is understandable. You have nothing to be ashamed of." Kaname pulled apart from the boy and looked at him in the eye. "But know this: Revenge is a poison that rots you from within. If you let it consume you, you'll lose sight of who you are. You're a good person, Sasuke. The fact that you're feeling the way you are now, and that you don't like killing are proof enough of that." Kamane looked down. "However, you must also realize that, as a soldier-to-be, you may have to take a life at some point in your career; not because you want to, but because you may not have any other choice."

Sasuke looked down. "Have you ever killed anyone, master?"

"I have. And believe me, it's not something to be proud of, nor something that should be enjoyed. It was a former captain of the guard who was dishonorably discharged for harming the princess, and joined the Insurgos. He had Rimi held hostage, chained to her bed. They were planning to kill her once they used her to get to Lord Ansem. I wasn't going to let that happen. My sword had broken, and so I grabbed the closest sword I could find: Dawn's Might. It's quite ironic when I think about it. At the time, I didn't know what the sword was, and yet I used it for the exact purpose it was meant to be used: To protect Rimi. You see, I didn't kill the man because I wanted to, I did it to protect the one I loved. I may not have been fond of killing, but it was knowing that I saved an innocent life that made my first kill easier to stomach."

"I see."

Kaname put his hand on his apprentice's shoulder. "Sasuke. If this makes you feel any better, I want you to promise me something: Should the time come when you must take a life, do it to save the life of another. Can you promise me that?"

Sasuke wiped his face of his tear with his arm before looking at his master with conviction. "I promise, Master Kaname."

Kaname smiled. _You'll become a great warrior someday,_ he thought. _One your father would be proud of._

* * *

 **Yami: Whew. That was a doozy. When I first thought of Sasuke's mother, Momo, having an illness, I wasn't entirely sure what it should be or how she contracted it. Kris and I together brainstormed until I came up with her inhaling the pollen of a poisonous flower and Kris adding that it was the Insurgos who planted said flower in her garden. Also if you read the first chapter of my Moonlit Knights story, then you know that Sasuke kept his promise.**

 **Kris: Did you enjoy the drama and emotion…? I know we did. Actually, I felt really bad during parts of this; Yami's right, it was a doozy. So… Please review!**

* * *

 **1 Corinthians 8:9**

 **"** ** _But you must be careful so that your freedom does not cause others with a weaker conscience to stumble._** **"**


	7. Chapter 6

**Kingdom Hearts © to Disney and Square Enix**

 **Sasuke, Momo, and Yamato © to Yamichaos27!**

 **Kaname, Rimi, Mika, and Orochi © to me!**

* * *

 **Chapter 6**

* * *

Sitting on her sofa, Rimi continued sewing on a small pink kimono. Her daughter's birthday party was that night, and, every year, she made her daughter a new kimono, with the same number of butterflies as her age; since she was turning five, Rimi was sewing on a fifth little purple butterfly.

The front door opened and her husband entered. "Hey, darling." He kissed her. "Need anything?"

"I need you to get dressed for the party."

"Rimi… do I really have to?" He pleaded. "That thing is so uncomfortable and…"

The woman turned a scowl on him. "I spent time making that thing. Are you telling me that you don't like my work…?"

"No! No! No! I'll go put it on!"

Rimi smirked, before tying the last knot and folding up the little kimono. "There we are…"

"That is beautiful work."

"What!?" The woman jumped up, seeing Xehanort standing behind her. "Xehanort! Why are you in here; my husband didn't let you in! Get out!"

"Oh, dear Rimi, why do you run? I mean you no harm…"

"KANAME!"

There was a thudding as the captain came stumbling in, shirtless, and Dawn's Might in hand. "What is it!? Oh… Xehanort! What are you doing in here!? Get out of our home!"

The silver-haired man bowed, with a sickly grin, before leaving. Rimi sighed. "Kaname, you could be more graceful and provide a more threatening image when I call for help, instead of stumbling in without a shirt on."

The man smiled sheepishly. "Hey, I was in the middle of changing, ya know. Also, are you saying you don't think he was intimidated by these muscles?" He started flexing muscles, which were not very big but still well toned.

Rimi facepalmed. "Just shut up and get dressed!"

"Yes, ma'am…" he went back to their bedroom.

* * *

Ansem, wearing a black kimono with a white obi, sat beside his niece, who wore a blue and yellow kimono, dotted with red and purple flowers, with a yellow obi and a red obijime. Rimi smiled. "I'm so excited!"

"I know you've worked hard for this day."

"I hope they all like them…" she smiled as Kairi came up, attempting to tie her white obijime over her purple obi; the child wore the kimono her mother made for her. "Kairi, do you need me to tie that?"

"Yes, Mommy…"

As she tied the bow, Kaname stomped in. "Rimi, do I really have to wear this?" He flinched as she gave him a look. "Never mind…" The man pulled at his red kimono and white obi.

"Oh darling," Rimi finished tying her child's obijime and approached her husband, "Don't complain; you look so handsome, just like on our wedding day."

"Ohhhh, if we're going on that…" The captain caught Rimi around the waist, dipping the woman before pressing his lips to hers.

Ansem shook his head, with a smile on his face. "There are times when I question why I let you marry my niece, and times when I know exactly why."

"Which time is this?" Kaname laughed.

"I'm thinking…"

The apartment rang with laughter.

* * *

"Isa! Hurry up!" Lea shouted impatiently.

"I'm not coming out in this!"

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "Come on, Mrs. Mae spent a lot of time making them for us, and it's for Kairi's party. It'd be an insult not to."

Lea shrugged. "Yea, I know it's weird, but it's for Kairi."

"Fine." The blue-haired boy came out into the open. "I can barely move in this thing." The three boys wore kimonos, made by Rimi; Sasuke wore a green one with a black obi, Lea had an orange one with a black obi, and Isa's was dark blue with a white obi.

"Aw come on," Sasuke said. "They're not really that bad. Personally, I feel honored to wear these to the princess's party."

The black-haired boy jogged ahead of the other two, despite his restricting clothing, carrying his gift. However, Lea turned to his best friend. "Did you tell them?"

"No… it's all for Kairi, they don't need to know about me."

"Come on!" Lea huffed. "It's your birthday too."

"Leave it alone! No one needs to know. This is Kairi's special day, and her party. They don't need to be burdened by me." Isa picked up his present for the girl.

Lea hated his friend's stubbornness, at times, but there was nothing he could do about that.

* * *

Rimi threw the door open, her smile lighting up as she saw Dilan escorting Lea, Isa, and Sasuke. "Oh, you three look so handsome! Dilan, thanks for escorting them."

The boys entered the apartment, only for Kaname to throw his arms around all their shoulders. "Hey boys!" His voice dropped to a whisper. "So, she forced you to wear those things too, huh?"

"Yep…" Lea shrugged.

"Good to know we're not alone in this," said Isa.

"Oh," the captain chuckled. "Believe me, you're not."

"And what are you talking about?" Rimi looked at them, arms on her hips an eyebrow raised suspiciously.

"Nothing!" Lea, Isa, and Kaname said in unison, causing Sasuke's eyes to roll.

"Ignore them."

Kairi ran to her three friends, "You came!"

Lea picked her up, grinning. "Of course we did! We wouldn't miss this!" He then gave her a noogie, making her giggle.

* * *

Kairi stuffed cake in her face, the red velvet and pink icing smearing on her face.

"Kairi," her mother came over, wiping her child's face. "Slow down. I know you want to get to present time, but you need to slow down."

Isa sighed, flicking his piece of cake with his fork. He jumped as a hand laid itself on his shoulder. "Isa, are you feeling well?"

The boy looked up at Kaname. "I'm fine, just tired… May I get up and walk around for a bit; it might wake me up?"

The swordsman shrugged, "Go ahead."

The blue-haired boy stood up, going outside the apartment, pacing around the hall. Someone cleared their throat, to his right; Xehanort stood, looking at the boy. "What are you doing out here? I thought you would be enjoying the party."

"I'm just taking a break… what are you doing here?"

"I was on my way to the lab," the man's golden eyes glinted. "The party is only for close friends and family, so I wasn't invited."

"Ok…" Isa went to return to the party.

Xehanort smirked. "You know, you're a very strong young man… putting the little girl before yourself…" With that, he strode away.

"Huh?" The boy stopped. How did he know…?

* * *

Lea watched as his friend left the apartment; the moment the door shut, the red-head spoke up. "Mr. Mae… there's something you need to know."

"What is it?"

"Today's Isa's birthday too." The boy said. "He didn't want anyone to know because this was Kairi's party and he didn't want to be a burden."

Kairi gasped. "It's his birthday too!? We need to throw him a party!"

Ansem smiled. "How about, after you open your presents, I'll go have the chef make a cake and a dinner for him. Dilan can escort him to the banquet hall after the party; it'll be a surprise."

"I love that idea!" Rimi clasped her hands. "Once this party's over, we'll go down to the banquet hall for his party."

The talk stopped as the blue-haired boy reentered the room. "Did I miss anything?"

"No," Kaname smiled. "We were actually about to open presents."

As they all gathered around the coffee table, Kairi sat down in Isa's lap, to open her presents. She picked out a box wrapped in gold paper. As her great uncle handed her the package, he smile. "This is from me."

"Ok!" She tore the paper off, grinning as she pulled the lid off the box, under the paper. "Aw! Uncle Ansem! I love it!" She pulled out a little lab coat, just her size.

"Now Even won't be freaking out when you come into the lab without permission. You've got an official coat now, and that's the same coat I gave to your mother when she turned 5." Ansem ruffled the girl's hair.

"Thank you, Uncle Ansem!" The little girl put the white coat on before grabbing a red bag, stuffed with white paper; she looked at the tag and grinned. "Dis is from Lea!" The paper went flying as she pulled it out. Kairi gave an excited squeal. "AW! It's so cute!"

"I knew you'd love it." The young pyro grinned as his young friend pulled out the stuffed white kitten. "There's something else in there, too." His smile only widened as the girl pulled out a scarf nearly identical to his, only a lighter yellow color. "Now we can match!"

Kairi wrapped it around her neck, excitedly. "Thank you, Fire Boy!"

"Anything for you, Flower Girl."

Kaname picked up another package. "This is from Isa."

"Ok!" The little girl took the package, pulling apart the wrapping to reveal a small book. As she read the cover, her eyes lit up. "Is this…?"

Isa nodded. "My mom talked with your Grandma and they wrote down the story she likes to tell you. There's also some pictures for you to color in that go with the story."

"Thank you so much!" She turned around, hugging the boy.

"Now for my present!" Sasuke handed her a square box, topped with a bow. His smile stayed plastered to his face as Kairi pulled the bow and lid off.

"BUNNY!" Kairi squealed excitedly. Inside the box sat a brown and white bunny, with a pink bow around its neck, who stared up at her, nose twitching. "IT'S A BUNNY!" The little rabbit allowed the girl to pick it up.

Sasuke rubbed the back of his head. "I asked your father if I could give you a pet, and he approved. I thought you might like her."

Kairi cuddled the bunny. "I love her! I'm gonna name her Daisy!"

Kaname laughed. "Ok, Kairi, let Mommy hold Daisy while you open your last present; this one's from me and Mommy."

"Ok." She handed the rabbit to her mother before grabbing the long box, wrapped in pink and purple paper. As she pulled off the paper and opened the box, she smiled. "Daddy! Really!?"

"Your mother and I agreed that you're old enough for me to start teaching you. I know, after you met Aqua, you've wanted to learn." Her father smiled as his daughter pulled out a wonderfully crafted wooden sword.

"Thank you! Thank you everybody!"

* * *

Isa sighed; the party had dwindled down to where only Lea, Kairi, Mrs. Rimi, and he were left. His best friend sat on the floor, playing with Kairi and her new bunny. He decided to help the girl's mother clean up.

"Isa," Rimi smiled at him. "Go play with the others, I can clean up all by myself."

"I don't mind helping you, Mrs. Rimi." He grabbed the broom. Honestly, he was doing this to keep his mind off the fact that his birthday was today too, but he wasn't getting a party.

The woman bit her lip. "Kairi, go put Daisy in her pen and take Lea outside. I'll escort Isa out in a minute."

"Yes Mommy…"

The blue-haired boy watched as the two left before going back to his sweeping. "Isa," Rimi grabbed the broom handle, "You sit down; I'll take care of this."

He moved to refuse, but the look in her eyes made him shut his mouth. So, he went to the couch and sat down. He watched the rabbit hop around its pen, munching on lettuce.

A hand laid itself on his shoulder, startling him. "Come along, Isa. Let's go."

"Yes ma'am." The woman walked beside him through the halls, however, he noticed that they weren't going the way towards the exit. "Mrs. Rimi, where are we going?"

"Come along, Isa…" She brought him to a large door. Pushing it open, she shooed the boy inside the dark room.

"What is going o...?"

The lights suddenly turned on, blinding the boy. "SURPRISE!" Isa stared in shock at the table full of food and the room full of guests. A banner hung from the ceiling, bearing the words "Happy Birthday Isa".

Isa's mother came up to her son, hugging him. "Happy birthday son. "

"Wh-what is this?"

"What do you think it is!?" Kaname exclaimed. "It's a surprise party!"

Kairi tackled the boy's legs. "You came to my party and now we throw you one!"

Isa looked around in shock. "But… how did you know?"

"I told them." Lea nudged his best friend. "You didn't really think I'd let you get away without celebrating your own birthday, did you?"

The blue-haired boy's face of shock, melted away into a smile. "Th-thank you… everyone…" He felt a hand grab his own; Kairi stared up at him, her kind eyes glimmering.

"Come on, Isa," She pulled him to the table. "You gotta blow out the candles!"

Isa blinked in surprise as a cake was brought out, with 16 candles decorating the top. The guest began singing "Happy Birthday" and bit his lip to hold back his tears of joy. This was the best birthday ever!

* * *

After Isa's party, everyone went their separate ways. Xehanort stared at the three boys, as Kaname led them out of the castle.

"You sure have been doing a lot of digging into those boys." Braig came and stood beside him.

The silver-haired man kept his eyes on the boys. "I find the three of them rather intriguing. In fact, they might be useful in the future."

"Looking to use a bunch of kids, eh?" The two began walking away, so as not to be heard by anyone who may pass them by. "What's so useful about them?"

"Well," Xehanort began, "there's the red-head, Lea Fahrenheit. He hold a great deal of resentment towards his father, Reno, for never being home, because of his job as a Turk. That hatred might be useful, though his closeness to the little princess is holding it back."

"I get it; if nothing else, his naivety may be useful."

"Yes," the man nodded. "And then there's Kaname's apprentice, Sasuke Kazekiri. The boy's father, Yamato, died before he was born. While not emotionally damaging, it nonetheless put a hole in his heart, and then there's his anxiety regarding his slowly dying mother. In truth, he has just as much potential as Kaname. Unfortunately, his relationship with his master seems to be filling the empty place in his heart, and is starting to mold the boy into, shall we say, a 'Mini-Kaname'. He is slowly becoming as strong willed as him. I imagine that out of those three boys, Sasuke will be the most difficult to bend to our will."

Braig grunted, "Like master, like student, it seems…"

Xehanort glanced at his compatriot, "Indeed, but there is the last one, Isa Gekko; he has quite a lot of hatred buried in his heart, more than Lea. Hatred towards his father for abandoning him and his mother. He's clever at hiding it, but he can't hide his darkness from me. Out of the boys, I believe Isa will be most useful. Tell me, Braig, what do you know of his father, Seymour?"

The sharpshooter scratched the back of his head. "I don't know much other than he was a high-and-mighty kind of guy, who took lots a trips. One time he came back, after being away for a long time, and he found out that his wife was pregnant when he left and now he had a son. Apparently, he never wanted kids; he stuck around for a few years, but eventually just left them, taking all of his money and possessions with him, including their house. Luckily, Mika was friends with Cissnei, who took them in until they could get on their feet. Last I heard, Seymour was off traveling, and hasn't come back since he left them."

"Very interesting… we shall proceed as planned. Continue attacking Kaname's will through his daughter. However, find a more reliable means, than paying off unruly rebels to do your dirty work…" Xehanort gave him a glare, just to make his point clear.

"Of course! You got it!" Braig mumbled. "Man… you can be just as scary as when you were old and wrinkly…"

* * *

 **Yami: Taking a break from danger and giving you a calm Isa-centric chapter. A double birthday party, too! Also a little display of Xehanort's interest in the boys. You know those gifts Kris put in remind me of my** ** _Brother and Sister_** **story.**

 **Kris: I did get the inspiration from his story for the presents, just saying. This was fun to take a break and get back to some fun. I'm really starting to love how dorky Kaname can be, he really just writes himself that way.**

* * *

 **Psalm 116:5**

 ** _"How kind the Lord is! How good he is! So merciful, this God of ours!"_**


	8. Chapter 7

**Kingdom Hearts (c) to Disney and Square Enix!**

 **Kaname, Rimi, and Mika (c) to Kristen Verne!**

 **Sasuke, Momo, and Yamato (c) to Yamichaos27!**

* * *

 **Chapter 7**

* * *

"Hey there kiddos!" Kairi, Lea, Isa, and Sasuke looked up as Braig approached.

Kairi never really liked Braig, he'd always been a little rough when he played with her, when she was little. However, he gave her no other reason to dislike him. Isa cocked his head. "What is it, sir?"

"Oh," he smiled, "I just found something I thought you kids might be interested in." He held out a rock, with one side glittering with bright crystals.

"Whoa…!"

The man grinned. "Yep, found this in the great maw, you know that side where we tell people not to go."

"Then what were you doing there?"

"I need some peace and quiet at times," he shrugged. "Now, if you kids wanna go get some of these crystals, I'll give you permission to go down there, just be careful." With that, he left, looking over his crystal.

Lea grinned excitedly. "Guys, let's get down there."

"I don't know…" Sasuke bit his lip.

"Sasuke…" Kairi pulled on his arm. "Pllleeeeeaaaasssseee!"

The boy sighed. "Fine…"

* * *

Kairi held Lea's hand as they walked through the rocky ravine. The two left Isa and Sasuke behind, who were gathering some of the crystals off the ground. Lea noticed a vein of crystal in the ravine walls and was looking for a larger piece.

Suddenly, the ground began shaking, sending the four children to the ground. The shaking let up, by the rumbling continued. Isa looked towards the two red-heads and gaped. "LEA! KAIRI! RUN!"

The walls of the entire ravine began crumbling around the four children. Sasuke had to jump back to avoid being crushed by a slab of rock. He and Isa got to their feet and ran towards the end of the ravine.

Lea saw the rocks begin to fall around them; he jumped to his feet, grabbing Kairi as he ran. Large slabs of rock began landing around, behind, and before the two. As he climbed over a rock, he tripped, sliding across the ground, with Kairi flying out of his arms.

As the boy went to get up, a chunk of rubble fell, trapping his foot against the ground.

"Lea!" Kairi ran to him.

"I'm stuck! Kairi, get out of here!"

The little girl grabbed his hand and began pulling. "No! I won' leave you here!"

"Kairi go!" The pyro looked up, eyes widening as the wall above them broke apart. The little girl wasn't leaving him. Lea closed his eyes before grabbing Kairi and pulling her under him, covering her with his own body as the rocks fell on top of them.

Isa turned just in time to see Lea pull Kairi under him and the rocks bury them. The ground shook again shaking the two boys to their knees, with the remainder of the rocks falling around them.

As suddenly as it started, the rockslide stopped. Isa and Sasuke coughed as the dust entered their airways. Isa turned around, blood turning to ice as he saw the pile of rocks, under which Kairi and Lea were buried, which stood four feet over his head. "Oh my gosh…"

"What?"

"Kairi and Lea are under there!" Isa jumped up, clawing at the rocks.

Sasuke gasped. "No…" He began breathing fast and heavily. "I-Isa… we need to get help…"

"Go then!" Isa exclaimed. "Get help, hurry!"

The blue-haired boy continued to pull away the rubble, as Sasuke took off running towards town.

* * *

Kaname stood in front of the castle, whistling cheerfully, slightly annoying Dilan and Aeleus.

"HELP!" The three looked up as Kaname's apprentice, covered in dirt, and dust.

The captain ran to the boy, noting the panicked look on his face. "Sasuke, what is it? What's wrong?"

"Th-there was a rockslide i-in the great maw…" The boy breathed heavily. "L-Lea and Kairi are trapped!"

"WHAT!"

Kaname stood up. "Sasuke, get my wife, Lord Ansem, and Cissnei. Aeleus, gather all the guard members and as many Shinra agents as you can find and have them meet me in the great maw."

"Yes sir!"

Dilan followed his captain, whose face seemed to be petrified in a blank expression. He had to find his daughter, no matter what, he needed to find her.

* * *

"I thought I said nothing too risky!" Xehanort glared at Braig, as they stood over the rockslide, out of sight from Isa.

The sharpshooter rolled his eye. "Look, if Flamesilocks hadn't grabbed her, I would've warped in and snagged her before she was buried. Once he grabbed her, I could only put a dark shield over the two of them, to make sure she didn't get killed. All we need to do is dig her up; we can kill the boy but we still win."

"But you didn't kill Isa and Sasuke." The silver-haired man, groaned. "They're going to get Kaname. If we want to salvage your… pathetic plan, we need him to think that his beloved daughter is dead and then collect her before they find her." He held out a hand and a pulse of darkness covered the site. "There, that will keep Kaname from sensing his daughter's light. Now, we should leave…"

"Yeah, yeah…"

* * *

Kaname saw the site of the rockslide and his breath caught in his throat. Kairi and Lea were under there?

Isa turned to them, tears cutting through the dirt on his face. "Th-they're under there… way under there…"

"Isa, stand back." Kaname sat down, calming his mind, attempting to sense his daughter's light.

Soon, Sasuke arrived on the scene, followed by Ansem, Rimi, Cissnei, and even Mika, who instantly ran to Isa, hugging him to her. Ansem closed his eyes after seeing the rock pile. "Oh my…"

"No… th-this can't be…" Kaname's voice spoke out, his words shaky.

"Kaname… What is it?"

"No…" he pressed his hands against the rocks. "I-I can't feel it… I can't sense Kairi's light! I can't sense it…"

His fellow guard swallowed hard. "You can't mean…"

"N-n-n-n… NO!" Rimi collapsed to her knees in horror. "M-my baby…!"

Kaname stared brokenly at the rocks, tears beginning to roll down his face. His arms moved and he began pulling the rocks away. "K-Kairi… Kairi…"

"Kaname, stop." Dilan grabbed his shoulder, but the man pulled away. "If you can't sense her, sh-she's gone…"

"I DON'T CARE!" The father continued to pull at the rubble. "I need to see her again… I need to hold my baby girl again… I n-need to hold her…"

Sasuke looked around him; Ansem knelt by his niece, attempting to comfort her, and Mika hugged Cissnei. If Kairi was gone, Lea probably was too. Sasuke kicked a nearby pebble in frustration and sadness. He couldn't believe this was happening.

* * *

For two days, Kaname, the entire guard force, and the Shinra employees cleared away most of the rubble. But there was no sign of Lea or Kairi.

However, Kairi's father would not give up. As the sun went down on the second day, despite the fact that he hadn't slept or ate since they began searching, he refused to leave. He wanted to keep going, he had to keep going. This had made Braig's attempts to secretly dig the girl out himself a lot harder. It took four guards to pull him away and back to the castle, where he collapsed from exhaustion.

* * *

Rimi sat on her sofa, hands shaking. She still couldn't believe that her little girl was gone. She barely registered someone opening the door to their apartment.

A hand touched her own, but she was so emotionally exhausted, she couldn't pull away as Xehanort sat beside her. "X-Xehanort…"

"My dear Rimi," he spoke in a smooth tongue, "I know that this is hard for you, and that your husband is completely exhausted and unable to give you comfort." He took both of her hands into his own. "However, I am here. I can give you the comfort your need and desire."

The woman pulled away weakly. "P-please stay away from me…"

"I'm not going to hurt you," He smiled. "Just let me…" He froze as the blade of a sword touched the side of his neck.

"I'm not so exhausted that I'll let you pursue MY wife in MY house." Kaname stood behind them Dawn's Might in his hands, his tired eyes wrought with anger. "Get out."

Xehanort stood up, without a word and left. The couple watched him leave, before Rimi touched her husband's hand. "Th-thank you."

The man sheathed the katana before sitting beside her. "Rimi…" He pulled her to him. "I know I'm tired, but I'm here for you."

"Kaname… what are we going to do…?" Rimi began to cry, clinging to Kaname's shirt. "What are we gonna do without our baby girl?"

Her husband allowed tears to begin flowing from his eyes. "I-I don't know… I don't know what we can do. I want her back so badly; I want to hear her laugh; I want to see her face; I want to hold her; I want my baby girl; I want my little Kairi back…"

Their apartment, which just days ago rang with joy and laughter, seeped sorrow and the sound of weeping.

* * *

Sasuke looked down as his ice cream dripped on the stone pavement. He couldn't bring himself to eat ever since that day in the ravine. Isa, who sat beside him, felt the same way. Because the rocks were unsteady, Kaname forbade the two boys from assisting in the rescue, much to their dismay.

Earlier that day, they saw the guards have to drag the captain from the rubble site. The young guard in training felt so helpless, just seeing his own master without hope, broke his heart. "I-I've never seen Master Kaname like this before…"

"Can you blame him? He just lost his daughter."

"He's not the only one who's lost someone." Sasuke dropped his ice cream, the melted sweet splattering on the pavement. "We just lost two of our best friends…"

Isa swallowed the lump that appeared in his throat. "Yeah… I lost my very best friend; the only person who was nice to me and whose mom took me and my mom in, after my dad left us. Lea may have been crazy and obnoxious, but I wouldn't trade his friendship for anything. And Kairi… usually, little kids run from me, but she's always been kind to me. Ever since we met, when she was only a few months old, she's always been happy to see me, and she always brightened my day."

"Kairi was the first friend I ever made, and the reason I have any friends at all." The other boy rubbed his arm. "She accepted me without a second thought and introduced me to you and Lea. She was angelic and wonderfully kind to everyone. Lea was, as you said, crazy and obnoxious but he was as loyal a friend as any. He knew how to make anyone smile, especially the two of us…" tears welled up in his eyes. "I-I just can't accept that they're gone."

The blue-haired boy sighed. "So, what're you gonna do then?"

"I'm sick of just sitting around and doing nothing." The boy stood up, eyes alight with grief and determination. "I refuse to believe that they're dead until I see them with my own eyes. I'll go find them myself, if I have to!"

"You're gonna disobey your master?"

Sasuke looked at the other boy. "Master Kaname always taught me to follow my heart; I'm sure he'll understand."

"Well," Isa stood up too, "You're not going alone."

"Alright then…"

* * *

The sun nearly fell below the horizon, making it hard to see. Isa carried a high-powered flashlight and set it down near the rock pile; in the last two days, half of the pile had been cleared away, but now the rocks were more unstable. They turned the light on to where they could see the rocks, and began clearing away as much rubble as they could.

The night grew colder as the hours passed by. Nothing could be seen, nothing but more rock.

Eventually, the sky began growing bright as the sun started rising. The two had been taking turns taking a break to get some sleep, throughout the night. At the moment, Isa lay asleep on the ground; Sasuke weakly pulled away a few rocks from around a large slab, which other small rocks were propping above the ground.

"Uh…" Isa rolled over and sat up. "Find anything?"

"No…" he slammed his fist on the ground. "We should've found something by now!"

Isa was about to answer when… "S-Sasuke? I-Isa…?"

"Lea!?" The black-haired boy grabbed the flashlight and shined it under the rock slab. They gasped in delight when they saw the two red-heads and the shining green and indigo eyes.

"Y-you came…" Kairi coughed.

Sasuke turned to the other boy. "Hurry, go get help!"

"You got it!"

* * *

Kaname lay asleep on the couch, holding Rimi in his arms. A hard knock on the door jolted him awake. "Huh… what!?"

"Captain!" Dilan threw the door open.

"Dilan, what in the name of sanity is going on!?" The man exclaimed, awakening his wife.

The guard grabbed the man's shoulder. "It's Isa, he and Sasuke went out and tried to dig Kairi and Lea out last night." Kaname went to say something, but the man cut him off. "They found them! They found Kairi and Lea, and they're alive!"

"WHAT!?" The couple jumped to their feet. "Why are we still standing here?! GET GOING!"

* * *

Sasuke rolled a large rock away from the pile, and he could see Lea's twisted foot where the rock had been; it was definitely broken…

"SASUKE!" The boy turned as Isa, along with Kaname, Rimi, Ansem, Cissnei, Dilan, and Aeleus.

"They're under here!"

The moment Kaname got close enough, gently pushing his apprentice back, he paused for a second, putting his hand over his heart, for right then and there he could sense his daughter's light again. _She really is alive!_ He thought. If he had even the slightest touch of doubt in what he was told, it was washed away now. "Dilan, Aeleus, get over here!" He stuck his hands under the edge of the rock, the other two guards following his example. "Sasuke, Isa, get over here. I need you to pull them out once we get the rock pulled up."

They began pulling hard on the slab, it moved a bit, but not much. Cissnei clenched her hands together, tears welling in her eyes. "I-it's too heavy for them…"

"Maybe for the three of them…" Ansem unwound his scarf, took off his lab coat, and tossed them to the ground.

Kaname paused as a fourth pair of hands gripped the rock, beside his own. His eyes widened as he saw whose hands they were. "Lord Ansem? What are you…?"

"I'm not letting my great niece stay trapped under that rock." Ansem nodded. The four men pulled up on the rock, allowing Isa and Sasuke to reach under and grab Lea, who held a tight grip on the little girl, and pull him out.

The boys pulled and pulled, dragging the two out from under the slab, until finally they were out of the way. The men dropped the rock with a resounding thud. Kaname turned around to see Lea roll over, and Kairi look up at him. Her dry voice croaked out. "D-Daddy…"

"Kairi!" The father scooped up his daughter, pulling her close. "My Kairi… Oh, I thought you were dead… oh, my sweet baby girl…"

Rimi ran to them, pulling the child into her arms. "Kairi… my darling… my baby!" Tears of joy rushed down her cheeks as she held her like she would never let her go.

"Lea!" Cissnei pulled the young pyro to her. "Oh Lea… my boy…"

"Let me take a look at him," Dilan knelt down beside Lea, checking his leg, shoulder and chest. "Looks like his ankle's broken, he's got a few ribs that are either broken or cracked, and his right shoulder's dislocated."

Kaname wiped the joyful tears from his eyes and looked over his child. "Kairi… are you hurt?" The child shook her head. The captain brushed her cheek; his daughter only had meager scratches and a bruise or two, but Lea had broken bones. Dilan reached out to pick the boy up. "Wait…" the man knelt down beside the boy. "Lea, you saved my daughter's life and risked yourself to do it. Thank you, so much."

"It was the least I could do," Lea coughed. "She's kinda like the little sister I never had."

"Dilan," Ansem looked at the injured children. "Take young Mr. Fahrenheit to the castle infirmary, and make sure he gets the very best care."

"Yes sir…"

Rimi kissed Kairi's head, following Dilan to the infirmary, as he carried the boy. Her husband turned to Isa and Sasuke, who stood nearby; his face radiated joy. "You both disobeyed me and came out here anyways, and you found them. They may have died tomorrow of dehydration; you two may have just saved their lives. Thank you."

"Sorry we disobeyed, but we couldn't just sit around and do nothing." Isa spoke up.

"Yea," the other boy nodded, "They're our friends. We had to do something."

"Yes, and we're all grateful for what you did for them." The captain gave the two a hug. "We can never repay the two of you for what you've done. Thank you, so, so much…"

* * *

Isa smiled as he lay down to sleep; lord Ansem allowed him to stay in the castle, in a room across from the infirmary, until they released Lea. With the help of magic, his friend should only be in the infirmary for two to three days. He was glad that his friends were safe and sound, and that he could help with that.

He sat up as someone cleared their throat, by the door. "Huh? Oh, Sir Kaname…"

"Did I wake you, Isa?"

"No sir," the boy turned to him, eyes darting to the large box in the man's hands. "What is that?"

The man smiled, "A gift; Aeleus has offered to train you with this. Maybe you'll join the guard one day." The captain placed the box on Isa's lap.

"Ok…" the boy opened the box, gasping at the claymore. "S-Sir Kaname… I don't know what to say."

"Call it a thank you present, for helping save my daughter today."

"Lea's gonna be sooo jealous!" Isa laughed.

Kaname joined him. "I wouldn't bet on it, I got him some chakrams; his mom's decided to teach him how to use them."

"What about Sasuke?"

"Well," the man smiled. "I'm going to give him his present when I get back upstairs, but I'd rather not say what it is. He might be following me and I want it to be a surprise."

"I understand," Isa pushed the claymore to the other side of the bed and laid back down. "Thank you, sir."

"No. Thank you, Isa…"

* * *

"I couldn't possibly accept a gift from you," Sasuke said as he watched his master open the closet. Kaname had brought his apprentice into his bedroom while Rimi was giving Kairi a much needed bath.

"Oh come now, Sasuke, I insist!" Kaname answered as he looked inside the closet. "Besides, once you lay your eyes on it, I highly doubt you'll want to part with it."

This got the boy curious. "What is it?"

"Something that I have kept safe for years." The captain pulled out something wrapped in a white cloth. "To be honest, I was actually planning to give you this once you became a full fledge guard. But after what you've done for my family, I can't think of a better reward. Plus, you've been such an excellent student, and you've proven your ability to take decisive action; to make the right decisions even if it means disobeying orders. I believe you are ready to wield this sword. I trust you will use it well." He then hands the wrapped sword to his apprentice with a joyous smile.

Sasuke unwrapped the canvas and stared in awe at what he was holding. It was a sheathed katana. Its blade wasn't as long as Dawn's Might, but it was noticeable wider than your average katana. He pulled it an inch out of its scabbard to look at its shiny, stainless blade. "What is this?" he asked.

"That, my apprentice, is your father's sword, christened Moon Cutter."

"My father's sword? Moon Cutter?" Sasuke was stunned at what he heard.

Kaname nodded. "Yamato forged it himself, with a little help from Merlin the wizard. This sword isn't all looks, you know. Like Dawn's Might, this sword is protected by magic to prevent it from wearing, rusting, or breaking, essentially making it indestructible. But that's not all: When you focus your energy onto the blade, it has the power to absorb the force of an attack, store it as energy for short period of time, so long as you stay focused on it that is, and then release that energy to strengthen your next strike. Moon Cutter is the perfect weapon for parry-and-counterattack strategies."

Sasuke gazed at Moon Cutter in awe. A tear fell from his eye as in his hands he was holding his father's blade, giving him a new connection to him. "Master Kaname…I…I don't know what to say!" He looked up at his master with a smile. "I'll take good care of it. Thank you so much!"

"No, Sasuke. Thank you, for bringing my daughter back to me alive." The captain placed his hand on his apprentice's shoulder. "Your father would be proud of you."

Sasuke couldn't contain himself any longer. He wrapped his arms around his father figure as if he were his actual father. Kaname gladly returned his student's embrace.

* * *

Rimi rocked Kairi in her arms, not wanted to part from her daughter, not even for a second. Her husband sat beside her, lightly petting his little girl's hair. His face stayed in an expression of concern.

"Kaname what is it? What's wrong?" The woman looked at him in confusion.

"It's just, something's been bothering me." He bit his lip. "I couldn't sense her light, not until Sasuke and Isa found her. My senses have never failed me before, so why now, and why on something this important?"

"I don't know… that is a good question though…"

"I have two ideas of what it could've been. Either my emotional distress was causing it not to work, or…" his eyes narrowed. "Something or someone was interfering, trying to make me think Kairi was dead." That second option worried him greatly; who would or could do something like that, and why?

Neither of them knew about the silver-haired man who stood outside their door, listening to their conversation…

* * *

 **Yami: This chapter is based on a little,** ** _Ask the OC_** **event Kris did on her Deviantart. I asked Rimi what her happiest memory was, and her answer was when she found out her daughter was alive after a rockslide incident. It gave me a few ideas that I had discussed with Kris and it evolved into this. You'll be seeing a first person version of this event as a flashback in my** ** _Moonlit Knights_** **story.**

 **Kris: Yea, this came from a thing on Deviantart and just spiraled itself into a full-blown idea. I honestly started crying while working on this (remind me not to listen to Dearly Beloved while working on these kinds of chapters…). Well, hope you guys enjoyed it!**

* * *

 **Psalm 62:1**

 ** _"I wait quietly before God, for my victory comes from him."_**


	9. Chapter 8

**Kingdom Hearts © to Disney and Square Enix!**

 **Sasuke © to Yamichaos27!**

 **Rimi, Kaname, Orochi, and Hanako © to Kristen Verne!**

* * *

 **Chapter 8**

* * *

Kairi put her yellow scarf, the one that was identical to the one Lea always wore.

"Kairi, come here, darling." Rimi buttoned up her child's coat and put on her little hat, with the pink pom-pom on top. "Now, you don't catch cold out there, but you enjoy the snow. We'll make Christmas cookies when you get back."

"Can Lea come too!?"

"I don't see why not," her mother smiled. "I'll let the guards know that he's welcome to come inside."

"Thank you Mommy!" The little girl went running out the door and down the stairs. The castle halls shimmered with tinsel hanging from the boughs of holly that spanned the ceiling. Lights wound around the handrails of the stairs and hung around the doorframes. She ran to the front gate, pushing it open.

Aeleus and Dilan turned to look at her, their faces partially covered by scarves. A light layer of snow sat on their shoulders and atop the hats they wore. "Your friend's been waiting for you…" Dilan said.

"I know," she smiled. "Oh, and Mommy said Lea can come in and help us make Christmas cookies."

The guards looked between each other. "Oh, I guess if Lady Rimi says its ok…" said Aeleus, "and it is the Christmas season after all."

"Thank you!" She ran down the stairs, to where she could see her red-haired friend waiting for her. "Leaaa! Ah!" Her foot slipped on a sheet of ice.

She gasped as a hand grabbed her under the arms. "Watch your footing there." Lea grinned at her. "You ok?"

"Of course! Are we gonna go or not!?"

"Oh yeah!" Lea picked the girl up and moved her away from the ice, setting her on the fluffy white snow.

"Let's go!"

* * *

Lea looked out from behind his snow fort waving to Kairi who sat behind a fort of her own, on the other side of a pathway. The girl waved back before ducking back.

Neither Isa nor Sasuke were with them this time. Isa didn't like snow very much, so he didn't go out as much. And while Sasuke had the Christmas season off from training, he spent more time at home taking care of his mother due to the weather affecting her condition.

The two children waited until someone came towards them. A man, about the age of Kairi's father, came down the path, hands in his pockets. Without warning, Kairi and Lea popped out from their hiding place, and hurled snowballs at the man.

The man jumped in surprise before ducking down and gathering snow in his hands. He laughed and chucked it at the kids; a snowball fight began. Soon, he moved on, covered in snow, but with a giant smile on his face.

The two kids did this over and over. With the spirit of Christmas in their hearts, they each joined in the fun with a smile.

* * *

Lea and Kairi jumped up as another person came towards them. They stood up, and hurled a volley of snowballs.

"AUGH! WHY YOU FILTHY LITTLE…!"

The two froze at the sight of an old woman, dressed in fancy robes, with the snow dripping from her shoulder and chest. The two servants behind her looked shocked at the fact that anyone would throw a snowball at their mistress.

Lea scratched the back of his head. "Sorry, Ma'am. We've been doing it all day and everyone's been joining us in the game. We kind of thought everyone else would do the same."

"Well you thought wrong you little street urchins!"

"Hey!" the pyro stormed up to her, with Kairi coming to hide behind his legs. "We're not street urchins! My parents are both high ranking Shinra officers; her dad's the captain of the guard and her mom's next in line for the throne! Got it memorized?"

The woman's eyes went directly to Kairi, making the little girl cower behind her friend. "Well, young man, my apologies. You should be so proud to be in a family that works for such an upstanding company." She glared at Kairi. "But you… I don't want you to come within two feet of me. You're worth less than the pile of manure my horse leaves behind."

The kids gaped in utter shock. "What the heck!?" Lea balled his fists. "Why would you say something like that!? What did she do to you!?"

"She was born…"

The woman turned her head away, striding past them, ignoring Lea's anger and Kairi's shock. "L-Lea…" the little girl clung to his leg. "Wh-why would she say that…?" He looked down to see his tiny friend crying.

"Don't listen to her," the boy picked her up. "She's just a meanie. Now, why don't we go get some hot chocolate and then we'll take you home to make those Christmas cookies?"

She wiped her eyes and smiled. "Ok…"

* * *

" _We wish you a merry Christmas! We wish you a merry Christmas! We wish you a merry Christmas and a happy new year!_ " The two kids walked up to the castle gate singing loudly; Dilan and Aeleus both smiled as the kids came towards them.

"Now, you two know the rules for Lea…"

"Straight to the Mae quarters, no sidetracking; go straight there." The two smiled and said simultaneously. The guards nodded and opened the gate for them. The kids went inside, happily skipping and singing.

"You still haven't told us why you're here!" Came the angry voice of Kairi's father.

The two children stopped by the door to Ansem's study, where the angry voices came from. They could see the old woman they hit with the snowballs, standing before Ansem and Kaname. She sat down in Ansem's chair. "Do I need a reason? It is the Christmas season…"

"Well you've never come around for holidays before." Ansem growled.

"Yes," Kaname huffed. "The last time you were here, was before my wife and I were married and you tried to force us to break off our engagement! And for what!? Because I would 'ruin' your bloodline!"

"It was already tainted but I just wanted to redeem it, but instead Rimi married you… the son of a radical rebel, and you ruined our royal bloodline by having a wretched offspring!"

The captain advanced on her, eyes blazing with fury. "Don't you speak about my daughter! She's a little angel and is already better than you could ever be!"

"I met the little wretch! She and her friend threw snowballs at me." Her eyes met Kaname's with the same fury.

"Well, I say you deserved it, and then some!"

"How dare you!?"

Lea couldn't hold it back any more. He stormed in, glaring at the woman. "Look! I don't know who you are, but you have no right to talk about Kairi the way you did! She's a perfect little girl and you're nothing but a mean old witch!"

Ansem and Kaname looked surprised to the see the red-headed boy, but the presence of Kairi outside the door explained it. "Lea, thank you, but we can handle this. Take Kairi to our apartment."

"No," the woman stood, "I need to set this boy straight. He has no right to talk to me like that; I am Lady Hanako, former queen."

Lea took a step back. This woman was Lord Ansem's mother… he could see why no one spoke well of her. He bit his lip. "I-I don't care who you are! Kairi's like my little sister! I won't let anyone speak to her like that! Got it memorized?!"

"Lea. Take Kairi to our apartment, now." The captain spoke sternly but with an air of thankfulness for the boy standing up for Kairi. He watched as Lea turned around and picked a sobbing Kairi up and carried her away.

Kairi clung to her surrogate brother, her tears dripping onto his shoulder. She heard the door to her home open and her mother cry out. "Lea, what happened!?"

"Lady Hanako showed up and said some mean things to Kairi."

"Oh! I'm going to go in there and slap her again!" Rimi fumed. "She may hate me and Kaname, but she has no right to take it out on our little girl."

Kairi whimpered. "Mommy, can we make Christmas cookies later…? I wanna take a nap…"

"Ok, sweetheart." The girl wormed out of Lea's grip and went down to her bedroom. "Lea, if you want to stay, you can."

The boy sat down and watched the woman bustle around the small kitchen, getting things ready for dinner. "Mrs. Rimi… why does Lady Hanako hate your family?"

"Well," the woman continued rolling out some dough. "She's very big on keeping the royal bloodline pure; my father may have been the crown prince but he went against her wishes and married a commoner. That's why she hates me, because my bloodline is mixed. However, she wanted me to marry someone with noble blood to 'redeem' our family line. However, I chose to marry Kaname, and because of his father she thought I shouldn't marry him; she even went far enough to try and force us to break off our engagement. I guess that because Kairi was born from two bloodlines she hated, she would really hate her."

"That's horrible. Kairi's just an innocent little kid, and that woman was so cruel to her."

"Believe me, she's just cruel." Rimi huffed, clearly showing how much she despised that woman.

Lea shook his head. "I used to wonder why there was a rebellion, but now I think I know exactly why."

The apartment door swung open and slammed shut with Kaname running in. "Rimi! We-we've gotta do something!"

"What's wrong, darling!?"

Her husband's eyes were full of anger and fear. "That-that woman! Do you know why she's here!? She's here with an order from that old judge! An order to take Kairi away!"

"WHAT!?"

Lea jumped to his feet. "She can't do that!"

"As former queen, apparently she can." Kaname slammed his fist on the table.

Rimi stormed out of the apartment with her husband following. Even from here, Lea could hear Kairi's mother yelling at the top of her lungs, and he heard the loud smack as Rimi slapped her grandmother.

"L-Lea…" The boy turned and could see Kairi peeking out from behind her bedroom door, her eyes wet with tears. "I-Is she really gonna take me away…?"

"No… she won't. I'm gonna make sure of that." He picked her up and cradled her close.

"How…?"

Lea thought for a long moment before his eyes widened and a sly grin spread across his face. "All we've gotta do is make her not want you anymore… and I know a few special pranks that'll get the job done." He wiped the tears off her face. "How does that sound?"

"O-ok… I can let you in through the secret entrance tonight."

* * *

Kairi snuck down to the basement secret entrance and pushed it open. "Lea?"

"I'm here." He grinned, a bag over his shoulder. "Are you ready for this?"

"Yea!"

The two kids snuck into the guest bedroom where Lady Hanako slept. Lea handed the little girl a bottle. "Squeeze this all over her hairbrush; I'll deal with the next part." As the child squeezed the bottle's contents onto the hairbrush as Lea got on his knees and pulled out a pair of scissors. He reached up and grabbed the hem of Lady Hanako's dress for tomorrow and began cutting.

Once the two finished their tasks, Lea cut the bottoms out from the woman's shoes while Kairi unscrewed some of the screws on a nearby chair, by her shoes. Then, Lea unscrewed the showerhead in her bathroom.

By this time, dawn was coming up fast, so the two left the room, bundling up to finish their errand, but not before leaving a note under the door to the Mae apartment.

* * *

Rimi, Kaname, and Ansem stood outside, down the stairs. Rimi wept because Lady Hanako was going to take Kairi away this very morning, and they couldn't do anything about it, yet. Her husband looked sad, but mostly furious and Ansem was the same way.

Suddenly, they heard a scream and Lady Hanako came stumbling out, face red with embarrassment and anger. The three adults, despite their anger and sadness, had to cover their mouths to keep from laughing. The former queen's dress had been cut to shreds, her toes stuck out from the bottom of her shoes, part of a chair was stuck to her rear, and a hairbrush hung from her hair.

"WHO DID THIS!?" She shrieked. "WHO WOULD DARE DO THIS TO ME!?" As she approached a large pile of snow fell from the roof, landing on Hanako's head and sending her to her knees.

Kaname looked up and could see Kairi and Lea on the roof. The little girl's head stuck out over the edge, just where Lady Hanako could see her, but couldn't see Lea.

The young pyro whispered. "When she looks up, blow it!"

The girl grinned, and when the old woman looked up, Kairi put her hands on the side of her head and blew a loud raspberry. Then she began singing, " _You're a mean one, Mrs. Grinch. You're a nasty wasty skunk. Your heart is full of unwashed socks. Your soul is full of gunk, Mrs. Grinch. The three words that best d'scribe you, are a' follows, and I quote… Stink! Stank! Stunk!_ "

"You brat!" the former queen staggered to her feet before storming up to Kaname and Rimi. "You've raised a little monster! I hope you're proud!"

"Never been prouder." The girl's father grinned.

Lady Hanako pulled out a piece of paper, the court order to take Kairi, and ripped it to shreds. "I don't want that THING near me! Do what you like with her! You could drown her for all I care!" She pushed past them and stormed down the stairs, her servants scurrying after her.

"And a Merry Christmas to you too, Mrs. Grinch!" Kaname laughed.

Ansem watched his mother leave and looked up at the roof. "You know, normally, I wouldn't condone such activities, but…" He smiled as his captain gave the duo a thumbs-up.

"Nice job, kids!"

The two red-heads waved before they suddenly slipped, sliding off the roof. Rimi quickly cast an Aero spell to catch the two. "You both need to be more careful!"

"Daddy! Mommy!" the little girl wasn't listening. "We got 'er! She's not gonna take me away!"

"No, she's not!" Lea exclaimed. "Kairi's staying right where she belongs! Got it memorized?"

Kaname caught up his daughter in his arms. "You two are little geniuses for that trick!"

Rimi smiled at the kids. "Well, since we don't have to worry about that old buzzard anymore, we never did get to go make those Christmas cookies…"

"What a perfect way to spend a perfect day with your best friend…"

"No, Daddy, he's not my best friend…" Kairi squirmed until her dad put her down. She ran and hugged Lea's legs. "He's my big brother!"

The three adults and the teenage boy stared at her in shock before the boy got on his knees and hugged her. "That's right, little sister!"

* * *

 **Yami: A nice Kairi and Lea centric chapter that truly shows the bond between the two. As well as a nice holiday chapter for this time of year. I'll admit, I laughed when I read Kris's little** ** _Grinch_** **reference.**

 **Kris: I totally dropped the Grinch part in because I was watching the movie while I wrote this. So, Merry Christmas everybody!**

* * *

 **Isaiah 9:6**

 ** _"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."_**


	10. Chapter 9

**Kingdom Hearts © to Disney and Square Enix!**

 **Sasuke © to Yamichaos27!**

 **Rimi and Kaname © to Kristen Verne**

* * *

 **Chapter 9**

* * *

"Are you certain we should be doing this, Xehanort?"

"Don't you trust me, Even?"

"Considering your actions towards Mrs. Rimi… not especially…" Even glanced over at the silver-haired man. He had some reservations about the experiment they had been working on, against the knowledge of Lord Ansem. Though Xehanort said that he would be pleased by their work, he wasn't sure.

His eyes glanced downwards as small hands pulled on his lab coat; Ienzo, who always followed him around, stared up. His bright eyes full of curiosity and veiled concern. The creatures they had been studying seemed to frighten the boy. The yellow eyes stared out, hungrily making the scientists pull back.

"Xehanort, why don't we stop for the day? It's getting late and the creatures are making Ienzo uncomfortable."

The man turned, looking at the two with his golden eyes. "Go ahead; I'll join you later." He watched as the two made the long trek up the ramp and out of the lower lab.

Xehanort smirked, opening one of the doors. A man, one of the captured Insurgos sat chained against the wall; he was still living, but just barely. "Now, all my research indicates exactly what I hypothesized. Time for a test…" He walked over to another cage and opened the door. The small black creature skittered out, moving directly towards the imprisoned man.

The creature jumped up, digging its claws into the man's heart. The dark matter seeped into the man and his body suddenly faded. A glowing heart floated through the air and into a swirl of darkness; the swirl compressed and expanded to form a small waist-height creature. It was black with a gold helmet, cuffs, and boots, red fingertips, glowing yellow eyes, and a symbol, the symbol of a heart with an X across it, emblazoned on its chest.

"Success!" Xehanort shut the cage door, locking the creatures inside. "I need more subjects to create more…" Luckily, there were plenty of incarcerated Insurgos in the dungeon, enough to create a small force. Soon, his plan would be complete…

* * *

Rimi hummed as she wiped down her uncle's desk; the castle staff had pleaded with her, ever since she was a child, to let them handle the cleaning, however she refused. Rimi adored doing things on her own and loved to clean.

"You are such a hard worker, milady…"

She turned; Xehanort came walking in from the laboratory. "Xehanort… don't scare me like that." Rimi moved, putting the desk between him and her. She continued to clean, but kept an eye on the man. "Is there something you need?"

He, suddenly stood beside her. She didn't see how he got there so quickly and she didn't care, all she wanted was him to be as far away from her as possible. "My dear Rimi, you are such a wonderful woman." He stepped towards her, smirking as she took a step back; they continued like this until Rimi stood against the corner of the room and had nowhere to run.

"Leave me alone…! If you do anything to me, my uncle will…" Xehanort pinned her arms to the wall and pressed his lips to hers.

Just at that moment, Even came walking back into the room, searching for Xehanort. "XEHANORT!"

The man pulled away from her. "Even, what are you…?"

He never finished his sentence. Rimi, the moment she got a hand free, she pulled it back and slapped her stalker across the face. "Get away from me you snake!" She saw a glint of murderous anger in his golden eyes just before Even ran over, pulling him away from her.

"Rimi, are you alright!?"

The woman trembled for a moment. "I-I'm fine…"

Xehanort jerked away from Even and ran back down to the lab. The scientist went to run after him, but he paused as Rimi fell to her knees. "Rimi! L-let's get you to your apartment…" He made a mental note to send for Kaname and Ansem the moment he could.

* * *

Rimi allowed her oldest friend to carry her up to her apartment; he laid her down on her own bed. Even sighed as he watched her roll over, her breathing was heavy. She felt so frightened…

The two jumped as a strange dark portal appeared; out of which, stepped Xehanort. Even clenched his fists. "Get out of here! I may not be able to fight well, but I will defend my friend should you try anything!"

"Hmph… I don't think you will…" Xehanort waved a hand. A dark haze came over the scientist and woman. All memory of the incident in the study, became hazy; Xehanort went back through the portal and it vanished.

"Mrs. Rimi, what are we doing here?"

The woman sat up. "I-I don't know… I think I fainted and you brought me here…"

"Y-yes, I think that is it…"

* * *

Xehanort rubbed his cheek; that woman would pay for her actions! His last hour had been spent using his dark corridors to move back and forth from the dungeon to the lab; he'd taken Insurgo after Insurgo and turned them all into the creatures. They came in different forms and all looked and acted threatening.

He smirked as he looked at his latest five creations. Two appeared to be arms, two legs, and one a body with a head. "You're a strong one… I have need of your services. There's a little matter I need you to handle, by the name of Rimi Mae…"

* * *

"Are you sure you're ok?"

"Kaname," Rimi placed her hands on her hips, glaring at her husband. "I'm perfectly capable of handling myself, thank you."

The captain smirked. He was only worried about his wife; Even told him and Lord Ansem that she had fainted, so Kaname wanted her nearby at all times. So, here she was, watching him train with Sasuke and two other boys: Cloud and Squall. Isa was off working with Aeleus and Lea with his mother. So, Rimi sat with Kairi beside her and a toddler who Squall babysat, Yuffie.

From behind the girls, Even and Ienzo came walking up. "How are you feeling, Ri… I mean, Mrs. Rimi?"

"Ev… just call me Rimi; I've told you that a million times." She sighed.

"Sorry," the two sat down. They watched as Kairi pulled Ienzo to his feet, wanting to play tag. The boy may not have been very talkative, but he did like playing with Kairi. "Are you sure you're alright, Rimi?"

"Even, don't ask me again… I'm fine…"

They watched the training and the game of tag for a while before the scientist spoke. "Remember when that was us?"

"Huh?"

"When you would pull me away from my books and studies to play tag… when you and I were children." He smiled. "Life was so much simpler then."

Rimi smiled. "Yes it was. You know, we haven't gotten to just sit and talk for quite a long time."

Even nodded. "I don't think we've talked like this since my father died."

The moment broke as a scream rang out from the castle. Everyone turned and saw the servants fleeing the palace. Behind them came dark creatures with glowing yellow eyes. "What!?"

"Wait… those are…" Even gasped. The creatures from the lab! How did they escape!?

Kaname's voice yelled out. "Sasuke! Cloud! Squall! Take them down, protect the civilians!" The boys ran forward, their master in the lead.

"Get close to me, Rimi." Even moved between his old friend and the monsters; Kairi and Ienzo hid behind the adults.

Suddenly, the gates shuddered and a large monster burst out. The body floated above two legs and two arms floated beside it; the helmet-like head looked about at the people before it. It fixed on Rimi and stomped over the guards and loomed over her, Even, Kairi, Ienzo, and Yuffie.

One arm drew back and Rimi shoved Yuffie into Even's hands and stepped away, just in time, for it to grab her around the waist.

"RIMI!"

"MOMMY!"

The woman struggled, but the creature's grip closed about her, threatening to snap her ribs. She could see Kaname running in her direction, but the monster's other arm was doing its best to keep him away from her.

The creature's grip suddenly loosened, as two flaming object hit its wrist. It still held Rimi, just not as tightly. Lea caught his chakrams and Isa followed up, swinging his claymore. "Lea! Isa!" Kairi ran to them. "It's got my mom!"

"Not for long!"

It took them a while to get at the hand that held Rimi; the other limbs kept getting in the way. Once both of the legs were taken out, Sasuke came up from behind with a glowing Moon Cutter, shouting "Breakthrough!", and impaled the hand, finally destroying it. Rimi fell onto the ground and Sasuke was about to help her up but was suddenly shoved away by the remaining hand. Before anyone else could get to her, the body of the monster, which had a small concave in the bottom, landed on top of Rimi, pinning her underneath. However, not all of her got underneath; the woman screamed as the edge of the body landed atop her right leg.

Angry and determined, Kaname held his sword downwards, his eyes closed in concentration. Dawn's Might began to emit an brownish-orange glow. His apprentice, after finishing off the last limb, notice this and yelled out. "EVERYONE! Out of the way!" They saw Kaname and everyone cleared a wide path from him to the monster.

"SMITE OF DAWN!" The captain swung the sword upwards, at an arc; a slash of darkness and light erupted from the blade, slicing cleanly through the monster. Moments later, the creature split down the center and vanished in a cloud of darkness. He dropped his katana and ran to his wife's side. "Rimi…! Rimi are you alright!?"

"Kaname... I-I'm alright, b-but my leg…" She flinched as he touched her leg, where her dress was stained red.

"Let's get you to the infirmary." He picked her up, gently and ran towards the castle. "Sasuke, Isa, Lea! Come with me in case there are more monsters!"

"Yes sir!" The boys followed suit, but not before Sasuke picked up his master's dropped sword for him.

* * *

Xehanort came into the infirmary to see how his excursion had gone. He was annoyed that Rimi still lived, but her leg injury was fairly severe, however, magic would heal her within a day or two. She was currently lying in the bed after being sedated so the doctors could look at her injury.

Even was speaking with Ansem and soon noticed the newcomer; Ansem saw him too and approached Xehanort. "Those creatures, were they of your design!?"

"Well, originally, but those came to be without my knowledge…"

"At the moment, I don't care why you were making them… at least not yet," Kaname growled. "Those _things_ came after us and that big one came after my wife. Because of you, she's hurt and was almost killed!"

Xehanort held up his hands, trying to look sorry and genuinely concerned. "I never meant any harm."

"Regardless of your intentions, I order you to stop these experiments immediately! Destroy the work you have; I refuse to allow anyone else to be hurt!" Ansem's eyes flashed with anger.

The silver-haired man nodded. "Of course. I'll get right on that…" Quickly, he moved out of sight, the glares of all the men in the room boring into his back. As Xehanort exited the room, he caught a glance at Sasuke, who was standing next to the door, staring at him nervously. Paying him no mind, Xehanort simply walked passed the boy.

Sasuke had overheard the whole thing and was taking note of his master's anger towards Xehanort. Hearing that apparently Xehanort was involved in the attack made him uneasy, but it also got him thinking. _Maybe now is as good a time as any._

* * *

"Mommy, are you ok?" Kairi stood by the couch as Rimi lay there with a cast on her leg.

"I'm fine, darling… Thank you all for coming to see me." She looked around at Sasuke, Lea, and Isa; they'd all brought her flowers.

Sasuke gave a smile. "I'm sorry, I can't stay for long. My mother's condition has been getting worse; I need to be by her side."

"Go then," Rimi patted his hands. "Tell her I wish her well, and thank you for helping save my life."

"No problem, Mrs. Rimi…" He bowed and walked out.

Lea and Isa gave the woman a smile. "We're glad you're ok."

"I'm glad none of you were hurt in the attack. And you don't have to worry about me; with the help of magic, I should be back on my feet in a couple of days." She looked up as Kaname brought over a platter of sandwiches. "Now, there is some food for you, but the one with apricot jelly is all mine." The kids laughed as she quickly reached over and snatched up her sandwich.

Kaname was happy to see his wife recovering. This was one of the only things he could use to mask his anger at Xehanort. Right now, he really wanted to vent; taking another look at his wife he left.

* * *

The moment he came out into the training yard, he saw his apprentice, standing there anxiously. "Sasuke, what are you doing here? I thought you had to get to your mom?"

Sasuke crossed his arms nervously. "Master Kaname, I-I have something important to tell you, about Xehanort."

"What is it?"

The boy sighed. "Well, you remember that Keyblade wielder I told you about, Terra?"

"Yes," the captain cocked his head. "But what does he have to do with Xehanort?"

"Well, Xehanort, he… he looks just like Terra."

Kaname gasped in surprise. "You sure!?"

"When I saw his Keyblade, I made a point to memorize his face, in case I ever saw him again." Sasuke explained. "Although Xehanort's hair and eye colors are different from Terra's, that face was unmistakable. Even his hair style looked the same...before it grew longer."

Kaname approached his apprentice. "Why didn't you say anything before?"

Sasuke scratched his head. "I-I just didn't know what to make of it, and I didn't know how I was supposed to bring it up, so I just kept quiet. I tried to tell myself it was probably just a coincidence or my imagination, but it just wouldn't stop bugging me. What do you think it means?"

Kaname put his right hand on his chin in thought. "Hmm… I can't say for certain, but… Three different Keyblade wielders were reported to have been spotted in town on the same day during the Unversed attack, including Terra. Then a few days later, a man who looks like Terra turns up, injured and with no memory of anything except his name, which is apparently Xehanort. What's more is that he was accompanied by an empty suit of blue armor and a matching Keyblade, which we believe belong to a woman. I asked King Mickey about Aqua, the Keyblade wielder who helped rescue Kairi from Unversed, and he told me she disappeared, with no clue to her whereabouts."

The boy cocked an eyebrow at this. "That all seems like an awful big coincidence…"

"Indeed…" the captain crossed his arms with a huff. "I must confess, I never trusted Xehanort from the beginning. Something about him just doesn't feel right, and I swear that feeling has been getting worse the more time passes. Also, Kairi's never been comfortable around Xehanort; she shudders every time she gets near him, and then there's his advances on my wife. I'm not comfortable with him around my girls at all. This whole thing is just unsettling…"

Sasuke bit his lips. "What are we gonna do?"

The boy's master sighed. "What can we do? All we have are gut instincts, but no solid proof. Making accusations would only bring repercussions that we don't want to deal with. All we can do is watch and hope that our suspicions are wrong, or that solid evidence presents itself."

"Ugh! I don't like this one bit!"

"Nor do I… Nor do I…"

* * *

Even walked down the stairs to the lower labs; something inside him told him that Xehanort wouldn't actually destroy his research. However, the moment he entered the lab, a heavy darkness came over his mind. "Wh-what…?" He could do nothing as the dark, heaviness of sleep overtook him.

Xehanort smirked. "I figured you'd come down here sooner or later. I needed some assistance with the experiment anyways." A haziness came into the scientist's eyes and he walked forward, ready to assist with the experiment. The silver-haired man smirked… soon, very soon, his plans would be complete…

* * *

 **Yami: Sorry about the wait. We needed time to recharge after the holidays. Here we are given just a taste of what's about to come. We are almost done with this story. As you may have already guessed, all that's left is the Fateful Night, as I like to call it, and then an epilogue featuring a timeskip.**

 **Kris: I hope you all enjoyed this one! Now, if I don't reply to any reviews, its only because I'm going on Hiatus until March. We only have two chapters left though, so… Stay tuned!**

* * *

 **Ephesians 1: 9-10**

 ** _"He made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him with a view to an administration suitable to the fullness of the times, that is, the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth. In Him."_**


	11. Chapter 10

**This is the last chapter before the epilogue.**

 **It's nothin' but feels!**

 **Have fuuunnnn…**

 **Kingdom Hearts © to Disney and Square Enix!**

 **Momo and Sasuke © to Yamichaos27!**

 **Kaname, Rimi, and Mika © to me!**

* * *

Xehanort grinned as he looked down at his hoard of monsters; Heartless he called them. Their yellow eyes staring around hungrily. "Soon, you shall have hearts to consume, for I have found the way to this world's heart, thanks to my 'help'."

Even, clouded by Xehanort's control, stood nearby, with a similarly controlled Ienzo. It was the only way to keep the child from causing trouble.

"Even, continue progress here, I must go and see if all is ready." He went up the steep incline and out of the lower laboratories.

Ansem the Wise, stepped out from behind a piece of machinery. "What are you up to…?" Quickly, he moved into the secret opening and made his way down the spiraling incline. He was shocked to see Even and Ienzo working around the same dark creatures who attempted to kill Rimi. He felt his anger begin to well at the fact that Even was assisting Xehanort in this endeavor, and had even dragged sweet little Ienzo into it.

He knew Kaname needed to hear about this. However, before he'd begun the ascent, he spotted a stack of papers, sitting on a table. His name lay penned upon the bottom of each page, but not in his handwriting; it was Xehanort's. Xehanort was writing documents under his name… Ansem pulled a sheet off the bottom for evidence and quickly left.

* * *

Ansem leaned over the papers on his desk, trying to figure out what Xehanort and his other apprentices were up to. His head perked up as the lab door opened; two little feet pattered across the floor and Kairi leapt into his lap. "Morning, Uncle Ansem!"

Even with everything on his mind, the older man couldn't help but smile. "Good morning, Kairi."

"Good morning, Uncle." Rimi came in, eyes glittering happily. Her foot had completely healed since the monster attack and the castle seemed brighter now that she was back on her feet.

"Is there anything you need, dear?"

"I have to do something this morning and I was hoping her friend could keep an eye on her."

"Of course my dear," Ansem's smile widened. His niece was always so polite; she asked for things even though he had told her many times that she did not have to. "I'm glad to be of help."

Rimi kissed her daughter on the forehead and hugged her uncle. "Thank you, Uncle." She turned on her heel and left.

"Uncle Ansem, Fire Boy is coming?"

"Yes he is," Ansem patted her head. He knew that his dear great niece would be itching for her best friend to arrive. Those two red-heads couldn't seem to stay apart for very long.

It wasn't long before Dilan escorted Lea inside, and he left with little Kairi, for a day on the town. He was happy that Kairi would be out of the castle; if Xehanort was trying something, he did not want her near any of it.

* * *

Kaname smiled at the three young men he was training. They were all doing quite well; Sasuke had just beaten Squall and Cloud in a training fight. He was very proud of all their progress.

He looked up and saw Lea, carrying little Kairi on his shoulders, walking down the castle stairs, towards the town. "Lea!" He called out, causing the two children to look towards him. He strode over, smiling, giving a thankful glance over at the older boy. "Sorry you had to give up your Saturday, but my mother had a doctor's appointment." Kaname was aware that he did not have to apologize to Lea. The boy adored Kairi and would gladly watch her any day. "Here," the captain handed the boy some munny. "This is for the ice cream I know you will get."

"Thank you, Sir." The pyro nodded.

Kairi fiddled with her best friend's hair as he took her down to the ice cream stand. Oh, how he wished Sasuke didn't have training and Isa didn't have to help his mom. Today was a perfect day to be outside and have fun.

As the two children ate their ice cream, it seemed as if nothing could go wrong on this perfect day.

Isa looked down at the list in his hand. He'd seen Kairi and Lea playing together and wished he could join them. But, his mother was trying to clean the house up before the beginning of the week and the celebration for her birthday tomorrow. He was tasked with buying all the food.

The boy turned a corner and froze. A man with blue hair with two long pieces hanging down on each side. He knew that man; he clenched his fists and tried to go around the man. But, the other man noticed him looking and growled. "What are you staring at?"

"Is that how you greet someone you haven't seen in years?" Isa approached him.

"Am I supposed to know you?"

"Wow!" the boy deepened his glare. "I would've thought the first thing you'd say to me would've been, 'It's been awhile, Son! My you have grown so much since last time I saw you.'"

The man's eyes narrowed. "Ah, I see… the offspring I didn't want. How is Mika doing?"

"Why do you care, _Seymour_!?"Isa said the man's name with disgust.

Seymour rolled his eyes and huffed. "I don't. Just curious."

"Then I see no reason to tell you squat, you selfish prick!"

"SILENCE!" Seymour snarled, "How dare you disrespect your own father!"

"You're no father of mine! Father's care, raise, and protect their children!"

"Your point?"

Isa grit his teeth. "You've done none of those things! Instead you just up and abandoned your own family!"

"You were not a part of my agenda." The boy's father crossed his arms. "You are nothing more than a mistake. Yet, Mika refused to give you up. I tried to tolerate you, but you and your mother began to make me sick."

"Tell me something, Seymour Guado! What was my mother to you!?"

Seymour turned to look his son in the eyes, "What was she to me? Why Mika was merely a pretty face whom I could do what I want with. I travel a lot and needed someone to pleasure me when I got home. Too bad she had to get pregnant and keep the child. Evidently she hadn't been taking the birth control medicine I ordered her to…"

Isa's eyes widened. "S-so she was just your plaything, is that it!?"

"Pretty much."

"You know…" the boy began shaking with pure rage. "I never thought I'd hate you any more than I already did. But you have just proven me wrong, YOU DIRTY OLD PIECE OF FILTH!"

Seymour drew back his hand to hit his son, but Isa stepped back, ready to block. "I've heard enough of your trash, you little brat. Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go finish my trade with Xehanort." With that, he turned and strode away.

"Fine! I don't want to see your face around here again! YOU CAN DROP DEAD FOR ALL I CARE!" Isa then stormed off.

Braig stood behind a building, watching the entire scenario take place. "Hmph… I guess Xehanort was right about that kid." He moved around the building, coming out in front of Seymour. "So you're the guy I was supposed to meet?"

"You must be Braig. Xehanort said you would guide me to his lab."

"Right this way, your high and mightiness…"

* * *

Sasuke and Kaname stood at the top of the castle stairs; the other two boys had gone home, but Sasuke decided to stay a little longer, with his master. He looked over at Kaname, who looked towards the sky, deep in thought.

"Master Kaname, are you alright?"

"It's nothing that needs concern…" however, his voice betrayed his true feelings.

"Is it about that feeling you've been having lately?" Sasuke spoke in a low voice, being the only person besides Lady Rimi to know about the bad feelings Kaname had been having.

Kaname gave a long, deep sigh. "The feeling has been a lot stronger today. Something tells me that a crisis is coming; a crisis that will destroy this town. It's going to happen soon, and I fear it is inevitable… I just wish I knew what it was."

"Do you think Xehanort has something to do with it?"

He could see his master tense, his anger at Xehanort clear. Sasuke couldn't blame him for being angry; considering, how Xehanort had stalked his wife among other things and his presence made Kairi nervous. The monster attack which had nearly killed Lady Rimi was also Xehanort's fault.

The captain's hand tightened the grip on the hilt of Dawn's Might. "My instincts can only tell me so much. But, it wouldn't surprise me in the slightest."

"Master Kaname," the boy placed his hand on his chest as a salute. "Whatever crisis befalls our land, I assure you that I will stand by your side and fight with you to the end."

"No, you won't be by my side…"

"Sir?"

The captain gave a confident nod. "You will be in town, evacuating as many people as you can. I will be in the castle, evacuating my family."

Sasuke moved to refuse. "But, Master! I want to fight with you! I can help! I'm strong enough!"

"It's not about how strong you are. Our duty as soldiers is to protect the innocent. Protect the people of this town. I have a family, and that takes top priority for me." Kaname moved to his student's side, placing a hand on his shoulder. "I'm counting on you. When the storm comes, you will find Squall and Cloud. You three will evacuate as many citizens as you can. Will you do that for me?"

"I… I will…" the boy said reluctantly.

Kaname smiled. "Good. Now, go home and get some rest." Sasuke nodded and began walking away, but his master stopped him with a word. "Sasuke… whatever happens I just want you to know it's been an honor having you as an apprentice. You are the best student I've ever trained."

His student stood silently for a moment, before looking back at Kaname. "As it's been an honor having you as my master. There's no better teacher than the best swordsman in the guard."

Kaname watched his student go, the boy who'd become like a son to him. He only hoped he'd see the boy again…

"Sir Kaname." Even's voice caught his attention. "Master Ansem has summoned you…"

"Thanks Ev…" He knew his wife's dear friend was glaring at his back. Even hated being called Ev, unless it was by Rimi. Kaname had only done it as a joke, to attempt to lighten the dark atmosphere he felt. He passed young Ienzo who grabbed his shirtsleeve as he passed.

"Do you have any more?"

"Of course I do…" Kaname had taken to giving the boy sweets every time they came in contact. He reached in and handed the child some taffy.

"Thank you, Captain Mae!" The child smiled and scampered off to Even's side. The captain could only hope that, when this crisis happened, that innocent ones like Ienzo would be spared.

These thoughts continued to plague him as he entered Ansem's office. Rimi sat across from her uncle and looked back at him. "There you are, darling."

"Kaname. Please sit." Ansem spoke in a serious, solemn tone. "We have much to discuss…"

The couple listened as the older man explain how he'd begun with experiments about the workings of the heart; though, he'd started these experiments with honest intentions, Xehanort, and, for some strange reason, his other apprentices had begun performing immoral experiments behind his back. They'd created those yellow-eyed monsters which had almost killed Rimi, called Heartless. After taking some of their research, Ansem had discovered that the Heartless were created from the captured Insurgos who had gone missing from the dungeons. Even after Ansem told Xehanort not to continue his research, after the containment breach, he'd continued to do so, and then brought the others into it. Xehanort had even written a number of reports under Ansem's own name.

"I'm telling you this because I feel I cannot hide it anymore. If they continue with this research, I fear that something terrible may happen. All this… because of my research…"

Rimi looked extremely worried, while Kaname just looked furious. The captain's thoughts went back to that ominous feeling he'd been having for a while. He locked eyes with his wife before speaking. "My lord, there is something about Xehanort I need to tell you. That, since the day you took him in, I've never had a good feeling about him. I could feel the darkness within him acting, like it couldn't decide whether to be smaller or larger."

"Truly?"

"I kept quiet about it because I didn't know what to make of it, nor did I want to jump to conclusions and make accusations. Though in hindsight I guess I should've said something from the start. Regardless, I've never trusted him. My instincts kept telling me that he was not what he seemed. But, recently his darkness has felt a lot stronger."

Ansem looked from his captain to his niece. "I see… and he told you about this?"

"I'm sorry, Uncle," Rimi said quietly. "We didn't want you to be angry at our suspicion."

The ruler didn't speak, so Kaname continued. "I've also seen the way he looks at Kairi. He has a particular interest in her. He knows; he knows about her heart of pure light. I can only imagine what he has in mind when he looks at her…" he slammed his fist on the table. "Like using her for his sick experiments, for example!"

The thought of that innocent child being experimented on, brought a heavy moment of silence over the three of them. It was Ansem who sighed, breaking the moment. "This has to be stopped! Tonight, I will confront all my apprentices and demand that the cease this at once! If I have to, I will physically throw a wrench into the machinery."

"You do that…" Kaname huffed, "But I must warn you, I've had this ominous feeling for a couple of months, and it's been exceptionally strong all day today. My instincts have never failed me before. There's a storm coming, and very soon too. I fear it will bring disaster to Radiant Garden. I also fear that Xehanort has something to do with it. And, I swear on Dawn's Might that if he so much as lays a hand on my daughter…" He drew out his sword, gritting his teeth. "I'll cut it off myself!"

The three turned as they heard footsteps approaching the study door; Kaname sheathed it just as Lea walked in, carrying a sleeping Kairi on his back. "Hi everybody!" The boy's voice instantly lightened the atmosphere in the room.

"What did you do to tire her out so much?" Rimi smiled.

Lea turned his head to attempt to look at Kairi. "Not my fault. She insisted on playing hide-and- seek, dragon fighter, and, her favorite, tag. After ten rounds of hide-and-seek, four rounds of dragon fighter, and seven rounds of tag, she tired herself out."

Kaname's face went from its former, firm expression to one of mirth. Even in times like these, he was happy to see Kairi and her friend having fun. He picked up his daughter and smoothed her hair. "Lea, again, thank you for watching her."

"No problem!" The boy waved and left, and Kaname could see Dilan ready to escort the boy out.

"I'll put her to bed." Kaname nodded to his wife and her uncle before taking his little girl upstairs, to the family apartment.

* * *

Lea hopped down the steps, while looking up at the setting sun. It was too bad the buildings blocked the sun as it hit the horizon. He soon saw Isa speaking with Sasuke. "Hey guys! Game night at my house, tonight!?"

"Sorry Lea," Isa shook his head. "My mom's birthday is tomorrow and I'm kinda shook up after seeing my father earlier."

"I can't either Lea," Sasuke frowned. "I'm sorry, but my mom's condition is getting worse. I don't know how much longer she'll last and I want to spend as much time as I can with her."

The pyro sighed. "Eh, it's fine. I completely understand. Later!" With that, he waved and headed for home.

* * *

Momo told Sasuke to go to bed, as she always did. But, her son merely pulled some cushions off the couch to make a mattress, grabbed a pillow, and blanket; he'd sleep on the floor of her bedroom. He knew that his mother could pass any day now, and, though she wished for him to go train with Kaname, he spent every other moment with her. He wanted to be by her side, if he could, when she passed.

Just as he fashioned his bed and grabbed his pajamas to change, a scream echoed in from outside. "What the…?"

"Augh!" his mother tried to sit up and groaned. "W-wh-at's happening…?"

"I'll go. Don't worry, Mom. I'll be back in just a few minutes." He threw his sword over his shoulder and ran out the door.

He froze. People ran, screaming in every direction, and Heartless littered the streets. He watched in horror as a woman tripped and a small Heartless jumped on her, digging its claws into her heart. The woman's body faded away and her heart floated away into the sky.

A swirling dark mass filled the sky, pulling things into it.

The boy gripped his sword and charged the Heartless, slicing it into nothingness. Every monster which came towards anyone near him, was cut down. He moved through the streets and banged on doors, yelling for people to get out.

"Sasuke!" Squall and Cloud ran up to him. "Wh-what's going on!?" asked Squall.

He shook his head. "That doesn't matter. Master Kaname gave orders for us to evacuate the townsfolk and that's what we're going to do!"

"Evacuate them where and how!?" asked Cloud.

Sasuke looked them in the eyes. "To the Great Maw, to the old caves… just get them out of the town! Go! I'll stay here and direct people in your direction!"

After a short pause, Squall said, "Alright."

"Be careful!" added Cloud.

"You as well! Now get going!"

The two nodded and ran off, calling out and motioning for people to follow them. Sasuke continued to motion the fleeing citizens towards the edge of town, as they were pursued by not only the pitch black Heartless he'd seen before, but others of varying colors and sizes, and some that cast magic.

He ran back down the street, right past his house. He paused; his mother was still inside. He had to get her out. A group of small Heartless, with gray rounded tops, with little yellow eyes peeking out from what looked like a shell, and a red swirl popping out the top, ran towards his house.

He could hear his mother's frail voice calling out his name, just as the little Heartless all simultaneously exploded, throwing the boy back. He shook his head and looked up, and his world fell apart. "MOOOM!" The side of the house where his mother's bedroom had been, was collapsed.

Sasuke scrambled to his feet, stumbling towards his house. He barely knew what was going on, other than he had to get to his mom. The boy didn't feel the cuts and splinters as he grabbed shattered pieces of wood and threw them to the side.

Then, he found her… tears rolled down his cheeks as he beheld her frail form, sprawled against the bed. Her eyes stared, frightened and wide, at the sky, but her son could only look at the thick board that now stuck out from her chest. "N-n-no… Mom… I-I can't lose you… not like this…" He leaned around the board in her chest and cradled her head, his tears wetting her face. His only blood relative was gone. Sure he knew she would've died soon anyways, but that didn't make it hurt any less.

Eventually he pulled back and wiped his face. He knew he had a job to do, and his mother would want him to do his job. However, Sasuke couldn't leave her like this. He pulled the wood out of her chest and took a piece of cloth and covered the wound. He pulled the bedsheets up to his mother's neck before closing her eyes and closing her mouth.

"I'm sorry, Mom…" the boy said caressing his mother's cheek.

"Sasuke…" He turned around and saw Sakura, Kaname's mother, looking at him. "I-I'm sorry about your mother."

"Miss Sakura, why aren't you evacuating!?"

The old woman grabbed the boy's hand, helping him walk out of the rubble. "I don't know where my son is. Please, take me to him!"

"But, the Heartless are coming from the castle. It's too dangerous!"

"I don't care," Sakura shook her head. "I need to be with my family! Please…" She stared into the boy's eyes until he finally nodded.

* * *

Kairi held onto her mother, tightly as they ran through the halls. The monsters with yellow eyes filled the hallways. They'd already hurt her dad, suddenly her mom's knees buckled as she yelled. Rimi's hand went to her side as blood poured from the open wound.

Kaname pulled his wife to her feet, helping her along as he continued to slice away at the monsters. They stumbled into one of the rooms, where Rimi collapsed to her knees. She set Kairi down and moved to stop more of the bleeding.

"A-are we gonna be ok?" Kairi placed both hands on her mother's arm, tears in her little eyes.

Rimi took a deep breath, thinking of the promise she and Kaname had made to each other: to protect Kairi, at any and all cost. She gave the child a comforting smile. "You'll be fine, darling…"

"That's not what I asked…"

Kaname turned to his child and put his hand under her chin. "Kairi… I need you to be very brave." He looked to his wife before turning his face back to his child. "Go on and run ahead. We'll be right behind you." He stared into the defiant gaze of his daughter as she stood her ground. "Please, do this for us. We don't want you to get hurt."

His daughter blinked the frightened tears from her eyes. "Yes Daddy…" Giving him one last tearful glance, she turned and ran out of the room, expecting for her parents to follow. But, as soon as she stepped past the door threshold, Rimi held up her hand, casting a barrier spell, and sealing Kairi outside. The girl turned, pressing her hands against the barrier, eyes wide with panic. "Mommy! Daddy! Don't leave me!"

"I'm sorry darling…" Rimi turned to where her husband cut away at the Heartless, only for one to leap at her, catching her forehead with its claws. Blood poured down the woman's face, blinding her.

"MOMMY! DADDY!"

* * *

Isa turned a corner, running for his life. He got separated from his mother in the confusion. He froze as Seymour stepped out in front of him. "Hello, boy…"

"Get out of my way!"

"You do not understand, child," the man kept his eyes down towards the ground. "I am helping Xehanort save this world!"

Isa cocked his head. "What are you talking about?!"

"Casting a world into darkness so it can come back in the new beginning! All hearts must be cast into darkness!" Seymour raised his hands and Heartless appeared around him. "If you want to be my son, then come with me. Help me cast this world into the dark!"

Isa took a step back. "Y-you're insane! You can go into the darkness for all I care, but stay away from me!"

"Insolent boy!" Seymour looked up, his eyes bright. "You shall join… augh!" A dark claw stuck through the man's chest. The Heartless turned on Seymour, their yellow eyes staring as they attacked, devouring the man in darkness.

Isa watched in horror. His father may have been cruel, but this was a horrible way for even him to go. Slowly, the boy moved around the Heartless and kept running. Suddenly, a flash of red caught his eye; Lea ran towards the castle and Isa decided to follow.

* * *

"Mom!" Where are you!?" The noise of screaming pulled Lea away from his game of solitaire, and into the streets. His mom was nowhere to be found and the Heartless were taking people's hearts left and right. He hoped his mom was alright… He felt in his heart that she was fine. After all, she was a Shinra agent and could handle herself.

His thoughts went to his friends. Sasuke could take care of himself and most likely had an assignment from Kaname. Isa was too stubborn to get beaten by such base creatures. It was Kairi he worried most about; sure, she had her "super dad" to protect her, but something within him, told him that Kairi was in danger.

Making the decision to find her, the boy took off running for the castle, not knowing that Isa had seen him go and decided to follow him.

Lea ran down the castle hallways; no guards stood at the gate and only Heartless blocked his path. He froze at the cry of a familiar voice.

"MOMMY! DADDY!"

* * *

He came around a corner and saw little Kairi, with her hands pressed against a barrier spell; on the other side, he could see her parents fighting off a wave of Heartless. The boy ran over and took Kairi's hand.

"AHH!" She screamed and pulled against him.

He grabbed her other wrist and knelt down, shushing her. "Hey, hey, it's alright! Flower Girl!" She stopped and looked into his eyes. He smiled and looked up to her parents. "Mrs. Mae!" His heart broke as he saw Rimi turned to him, wiping the blood from over her eyes. However, she smiled at him. "I'll get your daughter outta here. Don't worry…"

"Lea!" Kaname called back to him. "You better keep her safe!"

Taking the girl up into his arms, he nodded. "I will…"

Kairi reached for her parents, over his shoulder, as he ran. "MOMMY! DADDY!"

Sasuke stood, guarding Miss Sakura as they tried to reach Kaname. "I think they went down to the lab. I know there's a secret exit, and that's the most heavily fortified area."

"Lead the way…" The woman nodded.

As they ran, the boy fought off every single monster. The old woman stayed close to him, until the ceiling above began to crack. "Sasuke! Look out!" She pushed him forward and backed up as the roof caved in between them.

"Miss Sakura!"

"Go, Sasuke! Find my son!" The woman called to him. "I'll be just fine. Go!" The boy clenched his fist before turning and running deeper into the castle.

* * *

"SMITE OF DAWN!" Kaname swung his sword, unleashing his strongest attack. The Heartless all vanished in a black smoke. Kaname wobbled for a second before falling to his knees, breathing heavily.

His head shot up at the sound of a woman gasping and a sword piercing flesh. He turned and saw, to his horror, as a sword stuck through Rimi's chest. The blade tore her blood-splattered blue broach from her dress. The woman's eyes went wide and she let out one final gasp as the sword slid out of her body and she fell to the floor, lifeless. Kaname took a gasping breath as he looked into her eyes and a tear fell down his cheek.

"Such a pity…" the attacker spoke as he walked around Rimi's body. "And she was so beautiful too…"

The captain looked up, unsurprised by who stood over him. "Xehanort… I will never forgive you for this!"

"As if that matters." The silver-haired man smirked, pointing a longsword at the downed swordsman. "You will be joining her soon. And once I'm done with you, your pretty little daughter will be mine."

Kaname stood up, brandishing his sword, anger boiling inside him. "Don't you dare touch her!" He charged, locking blades with the man. They clashed vigorously, soon locking swords once more. "I should've warned Ansem about you from the beginning! I always knew you couldn't be trusted!"

"That's what I always hated about you, Kaname. Your instincts are just too good." Xehanort trust his hand forward, launching a burst of dark fire into Kaname's chest, making the captain stumble backwards. "Still, you are a warrior of very high regard." Xehanort smirked as he stuck the sword into the ground. "Therefore, it's only fitting that you fall to a weapon of high regard." Darkness burst in his hand, and from it came a very different weapon.

Though the design was dark, almost demonic in appearance, the shape itself was unmistakable. "A-a K-keyblade!? H-how!?"

"I have long had the power. Until I regained my lost memories, I was simply unable to call upon it."

Kaname glared, questioningly at his opponent. "Wh-who are you?!"

"I have quite a few names actually. My heart was once referred to as Keyblade Master Xehanort. This vessel that now carries me once held the name Terra. But, as of now, I would much rather prefer it if you called me… Ansem, Seeker of Darkness!"

Kaname let those words sink in for a moment. Everything made sense; the struggle he'd sensed inside Xehanort, as well as what Sasuke told him before about the man's resemblance to Terra… "What kind of man are you!? You shame your title as Keyblade Master!" The captain yelled, his anger consuming him. "You steal the body of another man, and now you have the nerve to defile your mentor's name by claiming it as your own, along with such a dreadful title! What did Ansem, the man who took you in when you were injured and without any memories, mean to you!?"

"I must admit, serving under him had its uses. The knowledge I've gained from him, our research, and my experiments. It will all prove useful to me in my ambitions." The Keyblade wielder smiled cruelly.

"Just what do you stand to gain?!"

"Kingdom Hearts…" Xehanort's eyes took on a greedy, longing look. "The heart of all worlds. Once Kingdom Hearts is in my grasp, I will remake the worlds in my own image. I will liberate them from the tyranny of light and restore the balance of light and darkness to what it should be."

Kaname tightened his grip on the sword. "You fool! Such power is too great for any one man. Continue in this endeavor, and you will only drown the worlds in darkness! Ending all existence!"

"Ah, but you're the fool. Darkness is not an ending, but a beginning. When we are born, we emerge from a world of darkness into a world of light, do we not? All worlds begin in darkness, and all so end. The heart is no different. Darkness sprouts within it. It grows, consumes it; such is its nature. In the end, every heart returns to the darkness from whence it came! You see… darkness is the heart's true essence."

Kaname's face took on a deadly calm as he spoke. "Are you done talking?"

"What?"

The captain closed his eyes, remembering the story that his mother told him and Kairi. "Light and darkness are two sides of the same coin. One cannot exist without the other. And no matter how deep the darkness there will always be a light shining within; a light that never goes out." He opened his eyes, glaring at his wife's murderer. "If you truly believe that darkness alone is the heart's true essence, then you don't understand a thing. If that were the case, I doubt there would be hearts of pure light. You say you want to restore balance, but from where I'm standing, YOU are the one who'd disrupting it right now!"

"I'm wasting my time and breath with you." The dark Keyblade wielder growled. "To obtain what I desire, I'll need all the pieces of the puzzle. And your daughter, one of the Princesses of Heart, is one of the many pieces of that puzzle."

Kaname readied Dawn's Might. "I won't let you lay a finger on her!"

Xehanort merely chuckled. "Your courage is to be admired. But look at yourself. Great swordsman or not, you're in an awful shape to fight. Do you really think you have a chance at defeating me?"

Kaname knew he was exhausted from fighting Heartless, his wounds had cost him plenty of blood, and his chest still burned from Xehanort's fire blast. He was in very bad shape. There was almost no way he could win this fight, but he could not give up! "When the lives of those I love are on the line, I never run away. I live to protect my family." His eyes drifted to his sword. "That was the duty I was charged with when this blade, Dawn's Might, was bestowed upon me." He looked at the body of his beloved Rimi, blinking back a tear that threatened to fall. "Although I've failed one member, as long as I still have family, and as long as I'm still breathing, I will fight to protect them, no matter what the cost. That was the promise I made and I have no intention of breaking it! And for that reason, I will bet everything I've got… to take you down!"

He summoned every last ounce of energy he still had into this last strike. Xehanort just stood there, smirking as darkness clouded around him. This enraged the captain, allowing him more strength. The two clashed once more, the pure willpower and love for his family against the pure darkness of his enemy. However, his strength soon reached its limit… It was all or nothing now…

"SMITE OF DAWN!" With one final stroke, Kaname aimed to end this, once and for all…

The next moment, Kaname's stomach was split wide open; blood bubbled from his lips and poured from his wound. His knees wobbled before hitting the ground, and then the rest of him hit the ground, into the pool of his own blood.

"How the mighty have fallen," Xehanort knelt beside the fallen warrior. He dismissed the Keyblade. "If you hadn't been so strong willed, you would've proven useful to me." He reached over and picked up Dawn's Might before standing and moving to Rimi and taking her broach. "These shall break the Princess's spirit." With one last content smirk, he took up the sword he'd used to murder Rimi and strode away.

Though movement was painful, Kaname pulled himself to Rimi's side. His hand rested atop hers. All the tears he held back, came pouring out as he gave his last smile, just before his eyes closed for the last time.

* * *

Lea clutched the sobbing Kairi close as he rounded another corner. He paused for a second at the sight of an elderly woman. "Miss Sakura!"

"Grandma!"

Sakura turned and her eyes lit up, happily. "Lea! You have Kairi!"

"Yes, but her parents are in danger. I have to go back and try to help." He handed Kairi to the woman.

"No!" Kairi reached out for him she had been separated from her parents, she didn't want to be separated from her best friend too. "Fire Boy, don't go! Please, don't leave… I'm scared… my parents will be coming soon, so you don't have to go… please stay…"

Lea looked her in the eyes. He hated to leave her, but Kairi needed her parents more than him. "Miss Sakura, I'll try and get her parents back." He turned and ran off, despite his young friend's cries.

"FIRE BOY! LEA!"

Sakura set her granddaughter down, taking her hand. "He'll be alright, darling. We just need to get out of here." They ran down the hall as fast as an elderly woman and young child could.

The two reached the bottom floor of the castle and Kairi saw the exit ahead. Finally, Kairi found some joy and hope. "Grandma! We're almost there!" She pulled away from her grandmother and ran ahead. She had only taken a few steps before a scream of pain caused her to stop and turn around. "GRANDMA!"

Xehanort stood over her grandmother, hold the longsword which stuck out of the woman's back. His golden eyes looked up, staring into Kairi's. "Princess… it is an honor."

"G-GRANDMA!" Kairi's terror-stricken face looked from her dead grandmother to her murderer. "Xe-Xehanort… why?"

A cruel smile crossed his face as he threw the bloodied broach of her mother's and the bloodied sword of her father's. His smile widened as Kairi screamed in horror. "They fought bravely, but alas, they are no more. As for you, Princess, I am still wondering what exactly to do with you."

"M-Mommy… Daddy…" the child shook too shocked to even cry. "Wh-why…?

Xehanort approached her, giving her a thoughtful look. "Perhaps I should freeze you in time or lock you away somewhere until the time is right…" This caught the child's attention; she stood and stumbled towards the exit. The dark Keyblade wielder chuckled at her escape efforts and waved a hand, summoning some Heartless in front of her. Kairi turned around, staring up at him. "No matter…" Xehanort stepped around the dead woman and reached down for Kairi.

"NO!" Kairi fell back, scooting away from him as far as she could.

As soon as his hand touched her, the pendant around her neck lit up. "WHAT!?" In a flash of light, the girl was gone.

* * *

Sasuke heard the sounds of battle and followed them; he assumed it was his master, fighting the Heartless. As he moved through the halls, he came upon an open room. The moment he stepped inside, his whole world fell apart for the second time that night.

"M-m-master!" the boy's knees turned to jelly and crumpled beneath him.

Kaname and Rimi lay in a large pool of blood, their hands touching. There was no doubt, that they were both dead,

"N-no…" His body shook as the boy crawled over to their sides. Tears cascaded from his eyes as he looked into the open eyes of Rimi, which he gently closed, and at the face of his master, which looked strangely peaceful. Sasuke didn't care that blood got on his clothes or hands as he fell onto his master's body to embrace it.

He'd lost his mother, the kindest woman he'd known, and the only father figure he had. He had nothing… not even a house to go back to, and his world was falling apart.

"Master…" the boy tried to say more, to thank the dead man for all he'd done, to openly vow to continue his training, but the words would not come. So, he lay there and wept.

A voice caused him to look up; Xehanort came into the room, not noticing the boy at first. He spoke to himself, definitely angered. "Just how did I manage to lose one little Princess!? There's no way she could have done that herself! That magic came from her pendent. Did someone cast a spell on it…? It could have been that righteous twat, Kaname; but, he was no magic user. Rimi may have known a few spells, but she wasn't THAT good. Who…" His face contorted in rage. "Of course… Who else could've cast such a spell to ensure the princess's safety? Trapped in the Realm of Darkness and STILL getting in my way!"

"What have you done!?" Sasuke stood up. He didn't know what Xehanort was talking about, but one thing he was sure of; the princess that the man had spoken of was Kairi. And, the boy could see Rimi's favorite broach and Dawn's Might in Xehanort's hand, both stained with blood. "Y-you did this! You killed my master! You killed the sweetest woman to ever live! And what did you do to Kairi!?" He drew out Moon Cutter, knowing that if Kaname had lost a fight against Xehanort, then he had no chance. But he was still going to try!

Xehanort seemed a little surprised at the boy's presence, but that soon turned to annoyance. "None of this concerns you. You are too much like Kaname to be of use, so go die in whatever way seems fit to you. But if you insist on badgering me further, I'll let the darkness have you."

"THIS ALL CONCERNS ME!" Tears nearly blinded him as the boy readied his weapon. "If everything that's happening is your fault, then I've lost all I had because of you! My mother is dead! I don't have a clue about my friends! You killed my master and his wife! And I know all about my master's suspicion of you! I may lose, but I can't let you continue!" With a yell, the boy ran at Xehanort.

The man waited until the last second before moving. He punched the boy hard in the gut, knocking the wind out of him, and then grabbed the boy's shirt collar and summoned a dark corridor. "As I said… I'll let the darkness have you." With a strong throw, he flung the boy into the portal; Sasuke disappeared with one final scream.

* * *

Lea heard the screams of Kairi and tried to go back, but the Heartless brought down the roof in his way. Having to take the long way, the pyro came to the spot where the screams had originated; his blood ran cold as he saw Kairi's grandmother lying dead on the ground.

"Oh my gosh…"

"Do you think Kairi's ok?" Isa ran up beside him having finally caught up to him.

Lea took a long deep breath. "I-I don't know… I hope so."

A second scream echoed through the halls. Isa's head shot up. "Th-that's Sasuke!"

"Let's go! Maybe Kairi's with him." The two boys turned and ran, hoping that their two friends were alright.

As they came down the hall, they entered an open room, where they skidded to a stop. Kaname and Rimi's bodies met their eyes. "N-no!" Isa shook his head. "Th-this can't be happening!"

"C-come on…" Lea blinked away tears as he pulled his friend past the bodies. He didn't want to see those two like that for long. "Let's just… find Sasuke and Kairi…"

"Y-yeah…"

Leaving the room, the two ran down towards lord Ansem's study. The sound of familiar voices halted their steps.

"Xehanort! What is going on!?" The boys moved through the study to where they could peek inside the lab. Dilan and Aeleus stood in front of them, beside Even and Ienzo; Xehanort faced them. In his hands, he held Kaname's sword and Rimi's broach.

The silver-haired man smirked and threw Kaname's sword down. "Your captain is dead. I killed him myself, along with his wife. His daughter is gone from this world and his apprentice has been given to the darkness."

"Y-you MONSTER! What had they ever done to you!?"

"Those two were useless to my plans, and also in the way. The rest of you, however, may yet be of some use to me."

Ienzo clung to Even's leg. "M-Mrs. Rimi… is gone…?"

"You killed two of the greatest people to ever live! You'll die for this!" Dilan grabbed his lance and charged the man.

Xehanort smirked, blocking the strike with a sword. "No, I don't think I will…" In his other hand, his dark Keyblade appeared; with a single jab, he stuck the end into Dilan's chest. The lancer stood stiff for a moment before a glowing orb came floating out of the man's chest. Xehanort allowed him to fall forward. "Now… who's next?"

The other three were in such shock, that none of them had moved. Xehanort took this opportunity. He lunged forward, doing the same thing to Aeleus, as he had done to Dilan; the guard barely had time to raise his axe-sword.

"Ienzo, run!" Even shoved the boy behind him and moved to put himself between Xehanort and the child.

"Even, you tried to stop me from finishing my plans for Rimi. For that, you will fail at saving the little one." The dark Keybearer grabbed the scientist, slamming him into a wall. He reached over and grabbed the fleeing Ienzo by his collar and jerked him around. "Goodbye, child…" He grinned at the hopeless fear in the boy's eyes before sticking the Keyblade into his chest.

Even gasped, horrified at Xehanort's actions! Then suddenly, his mind remembered something: a memory repressed by someone else, by Xehanort. Rimi… he'd caught Xehanort kissing Rimi. That was why Xehanort had been so angry with him and her. "If you wanted revenge on me, then kill me! The boy had done nothing to you!"

"But you prevented my plans from being carried out. I needed Rimi to be caught with me, by someone else, specifically her husband. Seeing his wife with another man would have broken his spirit and made him susceptible to my control." He grabbed Even and jammed the Keyblade into his chest. "It was such a shame to have to kill them. Kaname could have been useful, and Rimi was such a lovely young thing… but I suppose a scientist of your caliber would make a valuable resource for me."

With that, he stepped back, dismissing his Keyblade, and watched as the four's bodies began to fade. Xehanort turned to the lab, where he'd trapped lord Ansem. He could not wait to see how the old man would react to what he'd done.

"Hey! Is this how you wanted it!?" Braig now stood by the lab terminal, staring at him. Since Xehanort had told his partner nothing of his plans, this was all quite a shock. "Xehanort, you wanna fill me in!?"

He summoned his Keyblade once more. "I am…"

"Hey! Do you remember now, or… did you never lose your memory?!"

Xehanort leapt forward, sticking the Keyblade into his associate's chest. "That's not my name… I'm not Xehanort…" Braig moved to say something, reaching out for him, but he too fell, his heart floating away like the others. "My name… is Ansem…"

The entire time, Lea and Isa watched, in terrified horror. How could they possibly fight Xehanort after he had killed everyone! "W-we have to do something!" exclaimed Isa.

Lea nodded. "We'll probably meet the same fate as Dilan and the others, but we have to try, for Sasuke and Kairi."

"For Sasuke and Kairi!"

The boys summoned their weapons and stepped into the open. Xehanort did not seem entirely surprised. "I was wondering when the two of you would arrive. You've been so much trouble for me that I just knew the Heartless wouldn't be able to finish you off."

"Cut the crap!" Isa yelled.

"Well, as you wish…" Xehanort smirked, running forward and knocking the weapons out of their hands. "Now, for you two…" He slammed Lea back and grabbed Isa by the throat. "You, young Mr. Gekko, will be most useful to my plans."

The boy clawed at the hand holding his neck; Lea sat up. "Let him go!"

"You've caused me more trouble than you're worth, Lea Fahrenheit. The little princess would have been mine much sooner, but you had to try and protect her during the rockslide. That set back my plans, quite a bit, and now your best friend will suffer because of what you did!"

"No! ISA!" Lea stumbled to his feet just as Xehanort used his Keyblade to remove Isa's heart.

Xehanort dropped the blue haired boy and caught Lea in the chest, with his Keyblade, as he ran to Isa's aid. "There… now there'll be no more trouble from either of you. There's only one more loose end to deal with." Xehanort turned and walked down to the lower lab. He'd had some of the Heartless herd lord Ansem down and shut him in a cell.

He could hear the old ruler, banging on the cell door. Xehanort walked over and opened it, allowing man to come out. He glared angrily at the young man. "This is all your doing! I know it!"

"You are correct." No use in lying to him. Gloating was far more entertaining. "Tell me, Ansem, how does it feel to have everything taken from you: your research, your world, you subordinates… even your family?"

"What have you done!?"

"I'm afraid all your subordinates have lost their hearts."

Ansem's eyes went wide as he stared at Xehanort's Keyblade. "You took all their hearts?"

"Two of the three boys who frequently visited have met the same fate. I sent the third into the darkness to wallow in his despair at seeing his master lying dead." The silver-haired man inwardly laughed as Ansem's face turned to shock.

"Y-you killed Kaname!?"

"And your niece…"

The older man jolted, falling against the wall. An array of emotions crossed his features: shock, anger, and sorrow. "N-no…"

"Such a shame that I had to kill such a beautiful woman," the pain on Ansem's face made the other man smile wider, "and a man who could've been such a valuable asset to me. But those two were too strong willed for their own good."

Ansem pushed himself off the wall, eyes pained. "You maniac…! W-what about Kairi? Did you…?"

The other man shook his head. "The little princess was the lucky one. It seems that someone took the precaution and casted a spell that would transport her to safety before she could be captured by a seeker of darkness like me. Where she is at this moment, even I don't know. Still, as upset as I am for letting her slip out of my grasp, I am a patient man. And this may still work in my favor. You see, I've had this theory of a possible connection the Princesses of Heart may have to Keyblade; by letting her go like this, she just might lead me to one of their chosen: to a new subject for me to play with."

"You did all this for research and to test a theory!?" The scientist's anger showed through his tears. "You are insane!"

"To the small-minded maybe… but I must thank you. Your research on the human heart has been very helpful. I couldn't have completed my plans without it. And now your world and its people belong to the darkness!" Xehanort laughed, looking his former master right in the eyes. "And soon, you will join them."

Anger became the prevalent emotion on Ansem's face. "And I suppose you're going to steal my heart now."

"No," he shook his head. "Like Kaname's student, I want you to wallow in your despair. Think about what you've lost until it consumes you." He held out his hand, summoning a dark corridor behind Ansem. "Goodbye…"

"I will not let you get away with this! I will find a way to stop you, and if I don't, someone else will! You won't win!"

The dark Keyblade wielder rolled his eyes and blew the old man into the corridor with a burst of darkness. He smiled as he felt the darkness closing in on the world, destroying it, as he had destroyed the Land of Departure. Despite a few setback, everything was working out to perfection. With one last look towards where he'd sent off his old master, Xehanort let out a deep chuckle. "I've already won…"

* * *

 **Yami: Longest chapter in the story. I suppose it's only fitting for the story's climax. This chapter pretty much merges the story of Kris's** ** _Their Lives Before_** **with my** ** _A Warrior's Last Stand_** **, while omitting some minor parts from both stories, and adding a lot of new details in their place, like what happened to everyone else. A tragic ending to what started as a happy-go-lucky story, but stay tuned for the Epilogue, featuring a time skip with a much lighter note.**

 **Kris: time for the daily dose of feels! Yes, this one is so much longer and so much sadder. Yes, the Seymour mentioned is the same butthead from Final Fantasy X. Again, like Yami said, the epilogue will be so much lighter. So, enjoy the feels!**

* * *

 **James 1:21**

 ** _"_** ** _Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls."_**


	12. Epilogue

**This is the final chapter in this story…**

 **Warning: Feels ahead!**

 **Kingdom Hearts © Disney and Square Enix!**

 **Kaname and Rimi © to Kristen Verne!**

 **Sasuke © to Yamichaos27!**

* * *

 **Epilogue**

* * *

Ansem sighed as he did more and more paperwork. His eyes closed. "I need a break…"

"My lord?" Sasuke opened the door. "Are you free to talk?"

"Yes! I need to get away from this infernal paperwork!"

The young guard laughed. "Well then, you'll be glad to hear that the memorial is finished. And everyone is coming, just as you asked." The ruler smiled and nodded.

"I am glad they can all come." Ansem looked down at his papers. "And I'm glad that we won't have to worry about Xehanort anymore."

"We all are." Sasuke then closed his eyes. "I have to admit, though, there is one thing that still bugs me. The fact that Braig got away."

The radiant ruler nodded. "I know what you mean. What you told us about what you learned about his actions is quite disconcerting."

"Xehanort played us all for fools, which is one thing. But Braig outright betrayed us. And his actions toward Kairi and Master Kaname tick me off even more!" There was a little venom in Sasuke's voice as he said that. "Even now I just can't fathom why he would betray the very kingdom he served." Because of his father's sacrifice, Sasuke had always put loyalty in very high regard. He valued the concept of loyalty above all else. So the concept of betrayal, especially to a good cause, always hit him hard. That's why Braig's actions infuriate him so much.

Ansem rubbed his forehead in exasperation. "Dilan has told me that Braig was unsatisfied with his job. He once admitted that he often wished that we would seek out to conquer other kingdoms, just so he could get more action in his line of work. He was a thrill seeker, and a bit of glory hound. He was even a little jealous of Kaname for the recognition he always received despite being a humble man. Braig didn't care about the people, he just wanted the thrill of the fight, but he wasn't getting it because of our peacekeeping ways. Still, I never imagined he would go as far as turning his back on the kingdom, and allying himself with Xehanort."

"Well, whatever his reasons were, what he did is unforgivable. If it were easy, I'd go search for him myself and bring him to justice!" The swordsman then sighed. "But… there are too many worlds out there, and Braig is a slippery snake. I know for fact that going after him is a wild goose chase. But I swear, if he ever shows his face around here again, he'll get exactly what's coming to him! Besides, with this kingdom restored to its former glory, I know I'm needed here now more than ever." He then smiled and looked down at his new Captain's Uniform. "After all, someone has to take Master Kaname's place as the Captain of the Royal Guard."

It was His Lordship's turn to smile. "And who better to take his place than his own apprentice, especially after seeing your skills. You have definitely surpassed your master. I trust you will be an excellent captain."

"I am honored." Sasuke then turned. "Anyways. Lea went to get Kairi and they should be back any minute. I still have something to get before she arrives."

"Then go ahead." He watched as the young captain left, quickly.

* * *

"I'm very happy to be invited but why exactly are we here?"

"Can't four old friends hang out like old times?" Lea placed a hand on Kairi's shoulder. "Isa and Sasuke are waiting for us." The two of them walked down out of the castle and down to the gardens. Their other two friends stood there, awaiting them. "Hey guys!"

Isa smirked. "Good to see you, Kairi."

"Good to see you too…" The girl hugged them both.

The last time the four of them had spent time together was 13 years ago, before the fall of Radiant Garden. Now, they were all grown up and their world was restored.

The group of four moved to the outer gardens, laughing and joking as they would've done years before. Lea grinned, "Hey, why don't the four of us have a little, spar?"

"Free-for-all?" Isa asked.

The pyro nodded. Kairi smiled. "That sounds like a lot of fun! And I'm gonna kick all your butts!"

"Oh really!?" exclaimed Lea.

Sasuke smirked. "I'd like to see that!"

Kairi summoned her Keyblade as the others summoned their own weapons. The four clashed, but this battle was not full of grunting or sounds of anger, but laughter and snarky quips, mostly from Lea.

The four of them soon collapsed, laughing. "I haven't had that much fun in a while!" Sasuke sheathed his blade and lay back. "A battle that didn't involve any dangerous or evil people… a fight just for the fun of it. I don't think I've done anything like this since the world fell."

"But didn't you fight Hercules once?" asked Kairi.

Sasuke chuckled. "Yeah, but that hardly compared to when your opponents are old friends, all of whom had gotten very strong in their own right. Especially you, Kairi. You're definitely your father's daughter, that's for sure."

Kairi giggled. "Thanks!"

The four of them just sat among the flowers in a companionable silence, letting the bright flower petals float around them. "Kairi…" Isa spoke up. "Do you know why we asked you to come here today?"

"To hang out?"

"Yes, that, but we had an ulterior motive." Isa stood up, holding out a hand to Kairi; he helped her up as the other two stood. "Follow us…"

Kairi curiously cocked her head, but followed all the same. They walked to the central garden where a small cooler and a box sat on a ledge. Lea opened up the cooler. "The icing on the cake!" He held out sea salt ice cream to each of them.

"You never change…" the princess sat down and ate. But no sooner had she finished her ice cream, when Sasuke set the other box in her lap; she could see the box had holes in the top. "Sasuke, what did you do?"

He merely smiled. "Take a look!"

"Ok fine…" Kairi pulled off the lid and gasped. "You didn't!?"

"The last one I gave you died when the world fell, so I thought I'd get you a new one."

Kairi laughed as she picked up the little brown and white bunny. "Aw! She's so cute! Thank you!" The tiny little bunny wrinkled its nose as she stroked its head. "I'm going to call her… Sprinkles! Because the white spots look like sprinkles on chocolate icing!"

"You and rabbits…" Isa smiled and shook his head.

"Don't you have like six on the islands?" asked Lea.

Kairi winked. "Eight actually, and Sprinkles makes nine."

"You scare me." Lea laughed. "But that's not the real reason we asked you here."

The princess sighed. "Then what is?"

Lea walked over to the center of the circular garden and snapped his fingers; the air shimmered as if a spell lay over the center. Indeed a spell had been; instead of a circle of flowers in the center, a marble fountain base appeared and as the spell lifted, Kairi's eyes widened and she began to sob.

"This is why we asked you here…"

There stood a marble fountain, spewing clear water from beneath a pedestal, and atop the pedestal, standing tall, was a statue of Kaname and Rimi. Kaname had his arms around Rimi and they looked up at the sky, both smiling. At the foot of the base lay a marble tablet. Kairi moved closer and fell to her knees as she read the inscription carved into it. "Sir Kaname Mae: captain of the royal guard, a fearless warrior, hero to us all, a kind man, and a loving father. Lady Rimi Mae: the niece of our lord Ansem the wise, and gentle and giving soul, a beloved princess, and caring mother. Both gave their lives to save their daughter, Princess Kairi, so she would be safe and she would eventually help stop the Seeker of Darkness, who slew her parents, Xehanort. May their sacrifice be remembered throughout Radiant Garden for all time."

Sasuke knelt beside Kairi. "Lord Ansem had this commissioned before you defeated Xehanort. He wanted them to be remembered for all time."

"T-this is amazing… thank you for bringing me…" Kairi lay her hand on the inscription. "Mom, Dad, thank you for all you did for this world, and for me…" A hand gently fell on her shoulder and she turned to see Sora standing behind her, with a bouquet of yellow roses in hand. "S-sora?"

He knelt beside her and laid the bouquet on the fountain; Kairi saw him reach to his waist and pull out Dawn's Might. "I wish I'd known them… I know, I met them once, but that was in the Underworld for a fleeting moment. And despite not knowing me, they entrusted me with you, Kairi…" He took her hand. "And all we can do now, is honor their memory."

"I know…" she waited until he'd set the sword down before leaning against him and sobbing. As she turned her head, her eyes widened. Ansem stood nearby with Riku, Aqua, Xion, and all the others. They all held flowers in their hands. Behind them, the entire population of Radiant garden stood with flowers.

She watched with tearful joy as each of them came forward and laid their flowers on and around the fountain. Sora moved back and allowed for Lea, Isa, and Sasuke to hug Kairi.

Sora looked up and almost thought he saw Kaname and Rimi standing behind the four, smiling down at them, and then they were gone. The boy smiled. "Finally, you're at peace…"

* * *

 **Kris: Let me say, first, that this has been an amazing experience, and I have been so blessed to work with an amazing writer and friend like Yami! I'd like to meet, not only him, but all of you in real like one day. He's been fun to collaborate with on this, and, since this is my first collab, it was a new experience. Yami has a wonderful imagination and his ideas are amazing! You guys are all wonderful as well and I'm so thankful for all of you and for all your support! I've had a ton of fun and I can't wait**

 **Luke 6:27-28**

 _ **"But to you who are willing to listen, I say, love your your enemies! Do good to those who hate you. Bless those you curse you. Pray for those who hurt you."**_

 **Yami: Well, that was a pretty sweet ride! My final thoughts: I think this turned out quite nicely for my first collab with someone. Kris deserves most of the credit though. She did most of the writing, since it's her universe and she had a better idea of how she wanted to things to play out. Me, I just shared ideas, proofread, and added my own touches here and there(occasionally whole scenes). Kris is quite a passionate writer and a great friend. And I have to admit, this project has really made me want to meet her in person one day. *sigh* I really need to get out of my writing slump. I mean seriously, it's been like months since I last updated… ANYTHING! And the worst part is… I have no excuse other than laziness, procrastination, distracting myself with YouTube watching and fanfic reading, and just plain not feeling up to it lately. No jobs, no school,... NOTHING! But anyways, thank you Kris for inviting me to partake in this project! I had a lot of fun! And thank you readers and reviewers for all your support!**


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